Fili's Second Chance
by idrylla
Summary: Post BotFA, eveyone lives. This is the story of Fili and his second chance to find love and peace in his family after experiencing some personal tragedies. Fili and Sigrid's paths keep crossing until they finally decide to take the friendship fate has offered and let it grow. A happy, fluffy story with some angst. Fili/Sigrid and Kili/Tauriel
1. Chapter 1

It was their final dinner together before the men folk would head out on their big quest - the reclaiming of Erebor. Dis had cooked up all the family's favorite dishes. They sat around the table eating, laughing and sharing stories. Tomorrow was the big day. Fili and Kili would be setting out for the Shire. Thorin had a meeting to attend, but he would meet the lads and the rest of the company on the appointed date.

No one wanted to bring up the fact that it might be their last time all together. The possibility of never seeing the family complete again was real, but too terrible to think about. Nevertheless, it lingered in the backs of all their minds.

They said their good-nights and retired to their rooms. Kili went to his and shut the door. Even though it had been a year since Fili married and moved out, Kili still missed his brother's presence. They had been together for more than seventy five years and apart for one. Kili hoped it wouldn't be another seventy five before he didn't miss his brother quite so much. Fili 's bed was still there, but the rest of his side of the room was empty. One thing Kili looked forward to on this trip was sleeping near his brother again. It was a selfish, childish desire, he knew, but he missed his brother's quiet snores. His bags were packed and sitting on the floor next to his bed. He was ready to go.

Fili and Mailli went to the rooms that had become their own apartment. It had been some spare rooms of Dis's home, but when Fili married, they closed off that section of the house and created a separate apartment. It was nothing more than a couple of rooms - a cooking area that also served as the sitting and dining room, a small bedroom and a washroom. It was small, but it was all they needed.

They changed into their night clothes and crawled into bed. Fili pulled his wife close. She curved her body into his and wrapped her arm around his waist. He breathed in deeply, smelling her hair. He rubbed his cheek against her head and felt the softness of her hair. He pulled her in tighter. She scooted in as close as she could get. Her face was pressed up against his chest. She kissed it and squeezed his waist. He kissed her head. She looked up to him and they kissed each other's faces. Their hands caressed each other's backs and heads.

Fili was determined to commit every part of Mailli to his memory - her hair, her face, the shape of her body, the feel of her he would say good bye so tonight he would make every moment of time they had together count.

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**This is a re-publish of this chapter. Although I had it neatly typed with easy to read paragraphs, saw to mess with my spacing and make it all one huge paragraph. I HATE that. So, I'm trying it again. Hopefully I can work out the publishing bugs. Thanks for reading! - Idrylla**


	2. Chapter 2 Saying Goodbye

The brothers rode their ponies in silence. Saying good bye had been devastatingly hard to do. There had been no dry eyes among them. Kili thought about suggesting Fili stay behind. That way he could be with Mailli and protect her and their mother, but he knew Fili would be insulted at the suggestion. Fili was going because he was the crown prince and by reclaiming Erebor, he could provide a real home for his wife and family.

Kili offered to stay and he was sure they would take him up on that. He wasn't really needed on this quest. They had a good company and if Uncle Thorin was successful, Dain and his army would join them. And it was no secret that Dis did not want her baby going off on this venture. As much as it would hurt his pride, Kili could stay behind and protect the women-folk. It was Mailli that came to Kili's rescue. She insisted he go and keep an eye on Fili for her and make sure he stayed out of trouble. Fili acted insulted. After all, he was the older brother and there to keep Kili out of trouble, but secretly he was grateful to his wife for giving Kili the permission to go. Fili did not want to go on this journey without his brother.

It didn't make saying good bye any easier, though.

After the third day on the road and the Blue Mountains were out of sight, the brothers began to enjoy their journey more. The Shire wasn't too far and the roads were relatively safe. It was the first time the brothers had been on their own for so long and it felt good. They had no doubt that their quest would be a success. Erebor and all of its splendor would be theirs.


	3. Chapter 3 A New Life in Erebor

Erebor was theirs, but not without a high price. The line of Durin had almost been completely lost. Thorin's wounds were extensive, but thanks to quick action and the healing skills of elves and dwarves, Thorin would recover.

For a while, no one was sure if the princes would survive. The healers had almost lost each of them multiple times, but after many difficult and painful weeks, the princes began to heal. Fili and Kili never left each other's side. Many said that the only reason they both survived was the willpower of the other one. They lived for each other.

The clean up and rebuilding of Erebor began immediately. Thorin knew it would take years to fully restore the great city to its former glory, but it would happen. He would see to that. Thorin sent out a guard to the Blue Mountains, inviting the families to move to Erebor. He was eager to see his sister again and reintroduce her to her childhood home. Fili was anxious to see his wife again. He was personally seeing to the restoration of a fine apartment. Mailli could live in luxury and there would be plenty of space for future dwarflings. He hoped they would have many.

The brothers began their princely duties. They were assigned various parts of the mountain to oversee its clean up. They were also charged with diplomatic duties with Erebor's nearest neighbors, the elves of Mirkwood and the men of Laketown and Dale. Fili had been assigned to the men and Kili the elves. It worked well for each of them.

Fili enjoyed working with Bard, formally a humble bargeman, but now the lord of his people. Bard was a good man and Fili also liked his family. Sigrid, the eldest daughter, was a wonderful lady for her people; kind, hardworking and generous. Bain was a strong lad with a talent for leadership. Tilda was still very young, but she was a joy and the least prejudice among her people towards the dwarves. She saw none of the difference other men saw in the dwarves, but Fili suspected it was because she was the same height as them.

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**I have forgotten the obligatory disclaimer that I own nothing having to do with the Hobbit. No money is ever made. Only my imagination and my joy of happy stories centering around Fili is fed by this, not my pocketbook.**


	4. Chapter 4 Letter from Dis

_Thorin, _

_My dearest brother. This letter is for your eyes only and soon you will know why. First of all, I want to say how happy I am for you. You have reclaimed our home. I could not be more proud of you. I am also extremely relived to know you and my sons are alive. That all of your company is alive is wonderful news. Gloin and Bombur's wives are especially happy. _

_I will not be coming with the first caravan, as much as I want to, but circumstances here prevent me. This is where I must ask you to keep this information a secret for the time being. Mailli is with child, but she is very ill. To be honest, I'm surprised she has lived as long as she has. She still has two months to go and I don't know that she will make it to the end or survive the childbirth. Please don't tell Fili. There is nothing he can do. By the time this letter reaches you, there is a good chance that she will be dead. If my some miracle she does survive, we will both be on the second caravan. Otherwise, it will just be me._

_Telling Fili would not do him or anyone else any good. He will find out soon enough. The second letter I have enclosed is one you can read out loud and share with the boys and your company. I will tell no lies, but I won't tell all the truth either. It explains the reason for us not being a part of the first caravan is because as your regent in the Blue Mountains, there is much for me to do and oversee. This is very true. It's not easy to organize these large groups to travel so far. The first caravan will be small and they will pave the way for us. The majority of us who will be moving to Erebor will be arriving in the second caravan. _

_It breaks my heart to see Mailli as she is. She and Fili do not deserve this and I can only hope Fili will be able to deal with this and live on for his child's sake. Mailli didn't know she was expecting when Fili left and even if he had stayed, nothing could have been done to prevent this outcome. Mailli does not harbor any ill feelings towards Fili or you. She is very proud. It was hard to calm her down from her joy when we read your letter and she learned Fili lives. We were afraid she would do herself harm as she cried in elation. _

_I look forward to seeing you and walking the halls of Erebor again. Mahal's willing, I will be there with both my daughter-by-wed and my grandchild, but should that not be, my grandchild at least. Another heir in the Line of Durin. I am loath to say farewell again, even in a letter, but I must. I will see you as soon as I am able. Give my love to my sons. And Thorin, if you must share the news with someone, make sure it is someone who will keep your confidence. _

_With love, your sister, Dis _

Thorin wiped his tears away. Poor Mailli. Poor Fili. Poor Dis having to deal with all of this by herself. This was not a good way to start life in Erebor. And after all they've been through, too. He wiped his hands down his face and massaged his temples. This turn of events could certainly destroy Fili. Thorin knew if they lost Fili, they would probably lose Kili and if both were lost, would it ruin Dis? He knew it would ruin him. Why couldn't the children of Durin ever get a respite from tragedy?

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**Dear Readers, I will be out of town for a few days, and will update again on Monday. The story is mostly written and I will post a chapter (or two) a day. See you Monday. - Idrylla**


	5. Chapter 5

The caravan from the Blue Mountains was due to arrive that afternoon. A messenger had been sent from the caravan to Erebor with a personal letter for the King from Lady Dis. She asked for a private greeting and to make sure both of her sons were there. Thorin didn't know what had happened. He didn't know if Mailli had died or not, but he assumed that if Dis wanted a private meeting, the worst had come to pass. She did not want Fili to find out about his wife in front of the entire caravan. Thorin steeled himself. This was not going to be easy.

Fili and Kili dressed in their finest to greet their mother. They paced the floor of the small greeting room where they were asked to wait. Thorin joined them with the news that the caravan had just arrived. Balin and Dwalin greeted Dis and personally escorted her to the private greeting room where her brother and sons waited. When the door opened and Dis stepped in, a tidal wave of emotions enveloped the family. They were elated to see Dis, but they saw immediately that she was alone, save for a small bundle in her arms.

Dis had rehearsed in her mind what she would say, but when it came to it, her practiced speech failed her.

"Fili, this is your daughter, Milly." She opened the bundle to reveal a small infant of no more than three months of age. Kili grinned. Fili frowned.

"Mailli? Where is she?" Fili asked.

"I'm sorry, my son. Mailli died in childbirth."

Fili fell to his knees. A loud wail of anguish filled the room. Kili was at his brother's side in an instant. He cried softly as he held Fili. Thorin went to his sister and held her. They all cried. When the baby's cries joined theirs, everyone stopped to stare at the infant. Fili looked at the face of his daughter for the first time. She had his pale blue eyes and sported a tuft of blond hair on the top of her head. He thought her a beautiful baby, but he couldn't come to grips with it being his daughter. He didn't even know Mailli had been pregnant. He wondered if Mailli had known when he left.

"Fili?" Dis spoke over the baby's cries. "Would you like to hold your daughter?"

Fili sat down in one of the room's chairs. Dis passed the bundle to him and he held it awkwardly. He didn't know what to do with the crying babe. Dis produced a milk bladder from a pocket of her travelling cloak and gave the bladder to Fili, who stuck it clumsily at the baby's mouth.

Thorin chuckled. He leaned down to Fili. "Hold her like this, it's easier." He helped Fili adjust his hold on the baby and milk bladder until they were both in a more comfortable position. Kili sat next to his brother and stroked the baby's head. The baby noisily sucked at the milk. Tears fell from Fili's face and landed on his daughter.

"Mailli picked out the name," Dis told them. "She was very sick through the entire pregnancy. To be honest, I was surprised she held out as long as she did. Every ounce of her life energy went to birthing Milly. She smiled when she found out it was a girl, then she was gone."

"I never should have left," Fili said. His voice broke Dis's heart.

"Nonsense. She missed you terribly, Fili. But, she made it very clear to me that she knew you had done the right thing, going with Thorin on the quest. She was so proud of you and boasted to anyone who would listen about her great husband who was out reclaiming his people's homeland with the king." Fili gave a weak smile.

"Mother?" he spoke up. "Thank you for taking care of Mailli and Milly and bringing Milly safely to me, but would you mind caring for her a while longer? I need some time to grieve. Soon I will ask you to bring Milly to her new home, but for now," he choked, unable to finish he request.

"Of course Fili," Dis took the child back from Fili. He ran out of the room, tears streaming down his face.

"Stay with him, Kili" Thorin mumbled.

Kili kissed his mother's cheek. "It's good to see you, Mother," he said and then left. He looked up and down the hall, but he could not see his brother. He asked a passing guard who said he had seen Fili head for the royal living quarters. Kili took off running. He found Fili standing outside the home he had so lovingly fix up for his wife. Kili laid a hand on Fili's shoulder.

"I can't go in there. It was meant for her. For us. Mailli and I. I can't go in without her."

"Then don't. Come to my room," Kili gently led Fili away from the door and down the hall to his living quarters. Fili collapsed onto Kili's bed. His body shook with sobs and he cried out Mailli's name over and over. Kili stoked the fire in the room before going to his brother. At first Fili slapped at Kili's hands as Kili tired to embrace his brother, but Kili was stronger and pulled Fili into his arms. They sat together on the bed and cried for many hours until sleep took them both.


	6. Chapter 6 Last Words

_Dearest Fili, _

_I hope that I get to deliver this letter to you in person once I arrive in Erebor, but in case I don't make it, I have some things I wanted to tell you. _

_First things first, I'm expecting! I didn't know when you left. In fact, I believe it was our last night we had together that put me in this condition. And I am so happy. The babe grows and I talk to it all the time. I tell it stories about you and us and the fun we'll have when we are all together again. I'm trying to be optimistic, but the truth is, my love, I am very ill. I am afraid you would be so ashamed of me seeing me as I am. My body is weak and carrying a babe has not been easy for me. I have been forced to stay in bed for months now. I had to move out of our home and I now live with your mother. I sleep in your old bed and it still smells of you. Sometimes, when I am most lonely, I close my eyes and take a deep breath and I can pretend you are near. I miss you so much. _

_I am so very proud of you, though. It is a great thing you are doing for your people. Whatever happens, never have regrets for making this journey. However it ends, it was the right thing for you to do. I miss you, yes, but I am proud of you. _

_I had to stop writing my letter for a few days. I am embarrassed to say that the simple work of writing wore me out and I had to sleep for a while. I am sorry I am so weak. If by some miracle I survive childbirth, I'm afraid I will never be able to have more children. And that makes me sad because we wanted to have many. I hope this one is a boy. A son, in the line of Durin, and an heir for you. _

_I will love you forever. You have made me so happy and I am honored to bear your child. I am happy to give my life for the babe, so never be upset by this. My heart is with you and I hope that one day we will be reunited. Give my love to our child. My dear, wonderful Fili, I love you. _

_Yours forever, Mailli _

Fili had found the letter among his daughter's things. He had read the letter so often now, he had it memorized. His heart ached to think that Mailli had been afraid he would be ashamed of her because her body was ill. He never would have felt like that and if he had known it would have been that way for her, he would have been content to never have children if it meant a lifetime with his wife. But there was no way of knowing and there was nothing he could do or have done about it.

She said she was happy to give her life for their child and he believed it. Mailli was an exceptional person, but it didn't make losing her any less difficult.

Thorin had released Fili from all his duties for a while so he could mourn and get to know his infant daughter. Fili was trying hard to learn how to take care of Milly, but instead of teaching him, Dis mostly just took care of Milly herself. He decided that he would just have to ask her to leave and let him learn on his own.

It was not going well. Milly never slept. She cried a lot. She spit up all of her food, it seemed. Fili had no idea what he was doing.

Instead of moving into the large apartment he had built for Mailli, he and Milly moved into a small spare one. It had two bedrooms and almost no kitchen to speak of. It was several halls away from the rest of the family. Fili hardly ever left. Kili would visit most every evening and Thorin would come over from time to time, but most of the time, Fili was left alone. He was exhausted and lonely.


	7. Chapter 7 While Fili Sleeps

Sigrid was lost. The semi-dark halls that made up the maze that was Erebor all looked alike to her. She kept walking, figuring at some point, she would meet up with someone who could show her the way back.

She had come at the wishes of her father as an ambassador from Dale. She attended her meetings, met countless important dwarves, and did her best in all things to make her father proud. She would be returning home in the morning and she was looking forward to it. She missed her sister and there was so much to tell her.

An odd noise stopped her walking. She turned her head, listening for the sound. It sounded like someone crying. She walked quietly, trying to find the source of the sound and finally turned down a hall to see someone sitting on the floor, their head buried in their knees, and deep sobs shaking their shoulders. She could also hear a baby's cry, but it was farther in the distance.

As she walked closer, she could make out more detail of the dwarf in front of her. Blond, wavy hair, pulled back with the insignia of the prince.

"Prince Fili?" Sigrid whispered.

His head jerked up, but he did not look at her.

"Are you alright?" She squatted down and gently laid a hand on his shoulder. She could feel him shaking. "Can I help you?"

Fili sobbed again, but after several moments, he lifted his eyes to look at her. They were red. His face was swollen with crying and his hair was plastered to his wet cheeks. Sigrid wanted nothing more than to throw her arms around him and comfort him. She didn't know what was so upsetting, but she wanted hold him and tell him everything would be alright.

"She won't stop crying," Fili finally choked out.

Sigrid could hear the baby's cries. They were coming from the other side of the door Fili was sitting up against. She had heard rumors that the Prince's wife had died in childbirth and suddenly Sigrid understood why the prince was sitting in the hallway. Fili was grieving the loss of his wife, while trying to deal with a baby he had never seen before. All of this was piled on top of his duties as a prince. And, if the nightmares her Da and brother still had about the Battle of the Five Armies were torturing the Prince's sleep, she knew he must be exhausted to the point of insanity.

"Will you allow me, Prince? I have some experience with babies. My Ma died after my sister was born. I've raised my sister since she was a day old." Sigrid was surprised by the look in Fili's eyes. They were a mix of relief and madness. He nodded at her. Sigrid squeezed his shoulder reassuringly, stood and opened the door. The wails from the little baby tore at Sigrid's heart. She found the baby laying in her cot. She had squirmed in her crying fury and had lodged herself right up alongside the edge of her cot.

Sigrid picked up the wailing child and held her close to her chest. "There, there," Sigrid whispered into the baby's ear. She took the blanket from the cot and wrapped it around the baby. She began to walk around the room, gently bouncing the baby in her arms. The baby wouldn't stop crying, but Sigrid didn't expect the baby to stop right away. Once babies got themselves worked up like this, it could take them a long time to wind down. Sigrid felt the baby's changing rag. It was soiled. She looked around the room and found a stack of changing rags. She laid the baby back into its cot. It wailed louder.

She went out to the main living area of the apartment. Fili was sitting on a chair, his head in his hands.

"Excuse me, Prince Fili?" she walked up to him.

"You can't get her to stop either?" he looked devastated.

"I've hardly tried yet," she smiled sadly. "Don't worry, I'll calm her down, but it will take a little while. She's worked herself up into a right state. I was wondering if you can help me find a few things?"

Fili nodded.

Sigrid smiled kindly. "Where do you wash her? Is there a tub?"

Fili got up and showed Sigrid their washroom. A small tub sat overturned on the floor. She could see towels, soaps and oils.

"Alright, now, where are her clothes and how do you feed her?"

"Her clothes are in her room. There is a small wardrobe. As for her food, there is a dwarrowdam who is wet nursing her," Fili answered.

Sigrid debated what to do next, but knew that if she was truly going to help Fili and his daughter, she would have to give the prince some orders. "Fili?" He turned his red eyes to her. "What is your daughter's name?" "

Milly."

"Milly? That's pretty. Now, I need you to do a few things for me. Alright?" He gave her a glare before relaxing and nodding in agreement. "Good. Milly's hungry. Would you go to her wet nurse and ask if it is possible to send up a full milk bladder?" Fili nodded. "And after you do that, I want you to go somewhere else and take a break."

"What?"

"You need some sleep, Prince. Is there somewhere you can go to get rest? Your brother or your mother's home?"

Fili nodded again. He didn't seem to have the energy to do much else. "Kili's."

"Fine. Have the milk bladder sent up and then go to Kili's home for some sleep. I will stay with Milly until you come back. Don't worry about how long it takes. If you need a full night's sleep, get a full night's sleep. I'll take care of Milly."

"I can't ask you to do that," Fili started.

"You're not asking. I'm offering. No, I'm ordering you Prince Fili, go get some sleep and don't worry about anything."

Fili took a few moments to realize what he was being offered. He blinked back his tears. "I'll have the milk sent up. If you need me, I'll be a Kili's."

"Sleep well," Sigrid said.

Fili walked out leaving Sigrid alone with the screaming baby. Sigrid went back to the washroom and filled the tub with warm water. She looked at the soaps and oils that were lined up along the shelf and found what she wanted. She dropped a few drops of the lavender oil into the tub and then went to collect the baby.

Milly's face was beet red and streaked with tears. Sigrid took the baby to the washroom and removed all the baby's clothes. Supporting the infant's head and back in one of her hands, Sigrid laid the baby into the tub. Milly's arms flailed as she touched the water and let out another piercing scream. Sigrid hummed quietly and poured handfuls of warm water over the baby's belly and the back of her head. The scent of the oil wafted up into Sigrid's nose. The baby's screams calmed somewhat. When the water started to cool, Sigrid lifted Milly out and wrapped her in a fluffy towel. She patted her dry and then rubbed a little more of the lavender oil onto the baby's skin.

There was a knock at the door. Sigrid re-wrapped Milly, and cradled her to her chest, then went to answer the door. A large dwarrowdam stood there.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Sigrid. I'm a friend of Prince Fili's and I'm taking care of the baby so he can get some much needed rest."

The dwarf looked suspicious. "The prince came to me and asked me to send up a milk bladder. He didn't say someone else would be here caring for the baby."

"Prince Fili's exhausted. He's gone to get some sleep."

"You know anything about taking care of babies?" the dwarf asked.

"Yes, I do. I raised my sister from infancy after my mother died. Don't worry. Milly will be well cared for."

The dwarf handed Sigrid the full milk bladder. "I'll bring over another one in a couple of hours." With that the dwarrowdam turned and left. Sigrid sighed in relief.

The baby was still crying although the cries were not the same heart-wrenching wails of earlier. Sigrid dressed Milly in a fresh changing rag and a soft sleeping dress. She rewrapped the baby in her blanket. The baby looked exhausted. Sigrid was sure that if she stopped crying, Milly would fall asleep instantly. She sat down in a soft chair and arranged Milly in her arms. The milk bladder was placed to Milly's lips and she greedily latched on and sucked at the warm milk. Finally the cries stopped and a quiet settled in the room.

She stroked the baby's head and began to hum a lullaby. It was only a matter of minutes before Milly fell asleep. Milk dribbled down her cheek. She hiccupped a couple of times, but soon her breathing fell into the regular sleeping pattern. Sigrid set the milk bladder aside and cuddled the baby closer to her chest. It had been many years since Tilda had been this small. Well, Tilda had actually never been that small. Sigrid was amazed at the tiny size of the dwarf infant. She wondered if all dwarf babies were so tiny.

She didn't want to lay the baby in her cot yet, so Sigrid sat there, in the comfortable chair, cuddling the tiny princess. She felt so terrible for Fili, being thrust into fatherhood so abruptly and without anyone to share it with. She wondered why his mother was not helping more. Perhaps she didn't want to help. Perhaps Fili told her he didn't need any help.


	8. Chapter 8 Little Princess

The baby started to squirm. Sigrid hadn't meant to fall asleep, but the room was so peaceful, the chair so comfortable and the baby in her arms so sweet and warm, Sigrid must have dozed off. The baby started to cry again and Sigrid put the milk bladder back to the tiny mouth. Milly ate her fill.

The tiny babe needed changing again and Sigrid saw to her needs, changing her with all the efficiency of many years of practice.

Holding Milly in her arms, Sigrid wandered the Prince's apartment, speaking quietly to the babe. She felt a little awkward looking at Fili's belongings, but she only looked at the things that were left out. The apartment was a little messy. Sigrid smiled. She would tidy up things before Fili returned. He had a large bookshelf that was full of dusty books. Most of them were in the dwarven language that Sigrid could never hope to read, but quite a few were in the common language. A knock at the door startled Sigrid.

The wet nurse was back with another full bladder. Sigrid traded her the empty one. The dwarrowdam seemed satisfied to see the child quiet and alert in Sigrid's arms. She promised to be back a few hours later and left. Sigrid set the milk bladder down. She didn't need it yet, but it wouldn't be long before Milly would be ready for her next meal. There was another knock at the door. Sigrid worried for a moment of who it might be now, and was certainly not expecting the visitor at the door.

"Prince Kili," Sigrid curtsied slightly at the prince. She opened the door further and allowed him to walk in.

"Sigrid, right?" he asked.

"Yes, sir."

"You can't imagine my surprise when I came home this evening and found my brother passed out in my bed," Kili smiled kindly, but there was worry in his eyes.

"You didn't wake him, did you?" Sigrid asked.

"I almost did, but no. I figured he had good reason to be there and judging by the way he was sprawled across my bed, still wearing his boots, he must have been tired." Kili looked at the baby wrapped in her blanket in Sigrid's arms. "May I?" he asked, holding his arms open.

Sigrid passed Milly into Kili's arms. Her own arms ached a bit. It had been a long time since she had held a baby for so long and her arms were cramping. Kili snuggled Milly close and he cooed at her. "So, after seeing my brother, I had to go find out what happened to his daughter. I thought I would find my mother. How did you end up here?"

Sigrid felt nervous under Kili's intense gaze. "Well, sir, I was lost in the halls and I heard someone crying. I found Prince Fili, on the floor just outside his door in the hall. He said that Milly would not stop crying. He was exhausted. Beyond exhausted. I offered to help. I've raised my sister since she was born. I know how to care for infants."

"Poor Fili," Kili sat down in the soft chair Sigrid had enjoyed while holding Milly. "This hasn't been easy for him."

"Would you tell me what happened? I've heard rumors, but I would like to know more truth than rumor." Sigrid wondered for a moment if she might have overstepped her bounds questioning the royal family about their personal life.

Kili stared at her for several moments before nodding his head and sighing. "Fili and Mailli had only been married a year when we left on our quest to reclaim Erebor. Mailli stayed behind with our mother in the Ered Luin. We didn't know when we left, but Mailli was pregnant. She might not have even known when we left. I don't know. Anyway, Mailli died in childbirth. Mother was there and has cared for Milly since. Fili only discovered all of this a few weeks ago when Mother's caravan arrived from the Blue Mountains. He lost his wife and gained an infant daughter on the same day. He's refused any help from us, insisting that he could take care of his daughter on his own."

"But it's alright to ask for help," Sigrid said.

Kili nodded. "Yes, but Fili wouldn't. He said this was his responsibility and no one else's. Thorin has taken all of Fili's duties away for right now, allowing Fili time to get use to his life with a baby, but he'll have to return to his duties soon. To do that, he needs sleep and I've been able to tell for weeks he wasn't getting much. I had no idea how broken he was until now." Kili's eyes teared up, but he sniffed the tears back. "Thank you for helping him. He must have been desperate to be willing to accept help."

"Well, I'm not family. He doesn't have to put up a brave front for my sake. And yes, I think he was desperate."

Milly started to fuss. "I think she's wet." Kili held out the baby at arm's length.

"Come on, Uncle Kili," Sigrid smiled. "Time to learn how to change her."

"What?" Kili was shocked. Sigrid laughed. "Yes, you need to learn."

Kili learned quickly and when Milly was dry again, he passed the baby back to Sigrid. "How long are you going to stay here?" he asked.

"As long as Fili needs me too. I told him I would stay until he returned. If he needs a few days to sleep and recover, I'm alright with that."

"What about food for yourself?"

"Yes, I was starting to get hungry," Sigrid admitted. "What can I do?"

"Well, you are welcome to come to the dining halls at meal times or if you would prefer, I can send up some food for you," Kili answered.

"Would you?" Sigrid asked. "I wouldn't mind going to the dining halls, but I only ended up here by accident. I don't think I could find my way."

Kili laughed.

"And, I think I just want to keep Milly in her home, where we have quick access to her things. I don't want to get her worked up again like she was earlier."

"I understand. Don't worry, I'll send up some food for you and I'll check on you again in the morning, if that's alright." Kili went to the door.

"I would appreciate it," Sigrid told him.

"Thanks for helping out Fili like this. I've been so worried about him."

"It's my pleasure, Prince Kili," Sigrid smiled.

Kili smiled back and left. Milly was starting to fuss again, so Sigrid settled back into the chair and fed the baby. This time, when Milly fell asleep, Sigrid laid her down in her cot, tucking her blanket up around her. She tiptoed out of the room and stretched her arms and back. Then she went about straightening up the room and swept the floor. She collected Milly's soiled clothes and took them to the wash room. She filled up the clothes washing tub and worked at washing Milly's changing rags. She wondered if Fili ever washed Milly's clothes or the tub was just in here because it was part of the washroom. Somehow she doubted the Prince did his own laundry.

The food Kili sent up was delicious and filled her empty stomach. Sigrid was starting to feel very tired. She knew to get sleep while she could because it wouldn't be long before Milly would wake again. She made herself a little bed on the couch and laid down. It wasn't long before there was a knock at the door and the dwarrowdam was there with another full milk bladder.

It was a long night. Milly woke many times. Sigrid wondered if this was the way the baby had always been or if this restlessness had only started after coming to Erebor. Babies, she knew, were sensitive creatures, who could feel their parent's stress. She took a guess that Fili's grief and stress were being felt by Milly, who was acting out in return. It was not Milly's fault. It wasn't even Fili's fault.

The hours went slowly by, and Sigrid managed a little sleep, but only when she and Milly slept cuddled up alongside each other on Fili's bed.

Someone knocked on the door again. She was tired of all the visitors, but knew they were all people trying to help. Another milk bladder from the wet nurse and later, Kili returned.

"How's Fili doing?" Sigrid asked.

"He still hadn't woken when I left. He must have really been tired." Kili took his niece from Sigrid's arms. He cooed at his niece and kissed her head.

Sigrid enjoyed watching Kili with Milly. "Is she a normal size for a dwarfling?"

"Yes, at least I think so. I really wouldn't know, actually. I've never spent much time around babies."

Sigrid wouldn't have guess that, he seemed such a natural. "You're doing very well with her."

Kili smiled. "Yes, well, I know how to hold her and I like to talk to her, but that's all I can do."

"You can practice changing her," Sigrid smiled.

Kili looked ready to protest, but he smiled, nodded and went to Milly's room. Sigrid watched him to make sure it was done correctly, but he manage it all on his own. "Being an uncle is great. I wish I could be uncle to more. I would have liked a nephew to play with and teach to shoot a bow, but I'm very happy with this little princess."

Sigrid smiled sadly.

"Hello?" a voice called out from the other room.

Kili grinned at Milly, "It's Dada, let's go say hi."

Sigrid looked at the blond prince. His eyes were back to their normal color, although there were some dark circles around them. His hair was wet from a bath. He looked very shy, which surprised Sigrid.

"What are you doing here this morning?" Fili asked his brother.

"Oh, just came to say good morning to my beautiful niece." He kissed the baby's head again.

"Don't you have things to go do today?" Fili asked. He needed to talk to Sigrid, alone.

Kili sighed. "Sadly, yes, I do." He handed the baby back to Sigrid. "It's good to see you back in the land of the living, brother. Bye Sigrid." Kili smiled and left the chambers.

"Sigrid," Fili looked at his shoes. Sigrid thought he looked like a little boy who had gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. I am happy to help."

He sat down, wearily into a chair, rubbing his hands over his eyes. "I didn't know I had a daughter until a few weeks ago. Mother helped me the first few days, but I thought it was my duty to take care of my child, so I asked Mother to go. But I can't do it. I failed my daughter."

"Oh, no, Fili, don't say that. You haven't failed."

"I couldn't take care of her."

"All new parents need a little help in the beginning. It's alright. I cared for my sister since she was born, but I didn't do it alone. I had Da and Bain's help."

Sigrid got the overwhelming feeling again to hug Fili. She place Milly in her cot and stepped toward Fili. He could only reject her. She held out her arms and gently drew him close to her. Surprisingly he didn't fight her, like she thought he might. He leaned into her body, wrapping his arms around her waist like a child, and cried. Sigrid held him. She wanted to stroke his hair and whisper comforting words into his ear, like she would Tilda after a nightmare, but she stopped herself, remembering this was a fully grown dwarf prince, not a child to be coddled.

He didn't let go. He was starved for a warm embrace. He missed his Mailli so much. Never would she hug him again. Never would he kiss her again. Never would they sit together by the fire and talk late into the night. It wasn't fair how she had been snatched away from him so early in their life together.

When he did finally pull away, he smiled sheepishly at Sigrid. "Forgive me," he said.

"There's nothing to forgive. Would you like me to make you some tea?" Fili nodded his head and sat down in the chair. There was a small cooking area in the apartment for simple things like heating water and preparing small meals. She had discovered the few food items Fili kept while she cleaned yesterday. He didn't have much as he ate most of his meals in the dining halls or had them brought up to him.

Sigrid took a cup of steaming tea to the prince. He gratefully accepted it and sipped at it. "You cleaned!" he startled.

"Yes, I'm sorry if that was too presumptuous of me. It was just sweeping up and picking up things from off the floor. I didn't dig around into your personal belongings, I promise."

Fili looked at her with wide eyes. "Thank you."

Milly choose this moment to cry. Fili immediately tensed up and looked on the verge of crying himself.


	9. Chapter 9 Heart to Heart talks

Milly choose this moment to cry. Fili immediately tensed up and looked on the verge of crying himself.

"It's alright Fili. Let me show you things you can do to help her." Sigrid offered her hand to Fili. He took it and stood up.

They went to the cot where Milly lay crying. Sigrid picked up the baby and held her close. "Check her rags. If they are wet, change them."

"I do," Fili looked offended.

"Of course. I'm sorry." Sigrid changed Milly and rewrapped her. "Babies like to be snuggled and warm. Keep her wrapped in her blanket. It's very comforting to her. See if she is hungry. There is a milk bladder. Would you like to feed her?" "

Not yet. I want to watch you at work. I will learn." Fili hadn't touched his daughter since returning, not even to stroke her head or hold her hand. Sigrid could see how scared he was. She sat down and fed Milly. The baby didn't eat much and cried after her feeding. She slung the baby over her shoulder and patted her back until there was a satisfying burp from the baby. Still she cried.

"See!" Fili cried out. "I do these things, but she still cries."

"Babies cry," Sigrid soothed. "It's alright." She stood up and bounced the baby and paced the room. The baby still cried. Fili was getting more upset by the moment. "She can tell you are anxious," she told the upset prince.

"What? Like a pony can sense if it's rider is scared?"

"Exactly," Sigrid smiled at the analogy. "She can tell that you are upset and it only makes her more so." She popped the top off the milk bladder and put it into Milly's mouth. Milly happily accepted the nipple and calmed down immediately. "Babies also like to suck on something. It is soothing to them. But, she isn't hungry and doesn't need the bladder, only the nipple. That is something else you can do to help her if she gets too upset."

Fili nodded his head, learning his lessons.

"Would you like to hold her now?" Sigrid offered the dwarf his daughter. Fili stiffened again, scared at making the little one cry again.

"What if she cries?" he asked. Sigrid placed the baby into Fili's arms. Milly did not cry. She curled up towards her father. He pulled her close to his chest and laid his cheek on her head, feeling her soft blond hair tickle his cheek. He kissed the top of the baby's head and then relaxed his body. "Thank you, Sigrid. I'm sorry you saw me in such a state yesterday. I'm quite ashamed."

"You have nothing to be ashamed of. I'm not sorry I found you yesterday. I'm glad I did. I'm happy to help and there's nothing quite like caring for a baby. It's been many years since Tilda was so young and small."

"Tilda's your sister?" Fili asked. Sigrid nodded in affirmation. "You said your mother died when Tilda was born."

"Yes," Sigrid remembered that day like it was branded into her memories. "It was terrible. I missed mother so much and I tried so hard to be strong for Da, Bain and Tilda's sake, but I hurt. My body hurt. My heart hurt. One day, a few weeks later, Da took Tilda to our neighbor's house. He came back home and held me and let me cry. I cried for a long, long time, but Da just held me until I fell asleep. When I woke up, Da had brought Tilda back. I felt better. I still cried for Ma sometimes, but it wasn't as bad after that."

"Would you stay here for a few days and help me?" Fili asked. "You can have my room and bed to sleep on. I'll sleep in here, but I need help. Thorin and Kili can't help. They are too busy and I don't really want my mother's help, so would you? Please? It would just be for a few days. Teach me how to take care of Milly."

Sigrid almost turned him down immediately. It would be very improper to live with the crown prince in his apartment. But she saw his plea for help was genuine and she could not say no. "Of course I'll stay for a few days and help." Her heart melted to see the look of relief on Fili's face. "And you don't have to give up your bed to me. I am more than comfortable on the couch."

"Thank you," Fili whispered.

"Have you eaten yet?" she asked. Fili shook his head. "How about I go get some food and I'll bring it back here?" Sigrid asked.

Fili looked panicked again. "But what if she starts to cry again?"

"I won't be long, but if she does, go through those steps again. Check to see if she's wet, wrap her in her blanket, try feeding her or just give her the nipple again. Sing to her, tell her a story. Let her hear your soft voice. She'll learn to respond to the soft, quiet voice of her father. I'll be back very soon."

Fili nodded, still looking scared. "Oh, which way out of here?" Sigrid asked. "I got lost yesterday."

Fili smiled and gave her instructions on how to get to the kitchens and to ask a guard to escort her back. She closed the door behind her and Fili was left alone. Milly happily sucked at the nipple in her mouth. Her eyes were drooping. Fili didn't move. He didn't dare disturb her. He wished someone would come by to see them. He was afraid of being left alone. He wanted company.

Instead he took a deep breath and willed himself to be calm. He had faced orcs, goblins, trolls, wargs and many foul beasts. He had fought in battles with more bravery than he was feeling right now. This was his daughter. He shouldn't be afraid of her. He should love her and if he was patient, she would love him back. He was relieved to hear a knock at his door. He didn't know who it was, but at least he wouldn't be alone.

"Enter," he called out, startling the baby in his arms. She urgently sucked at the nipple in her mouth and fell back asleep, much to Fili's relief. Thorin walked in.

"Hello Fili," Thorin said.

"Morning, Uncle."

"She's asleep?" Thorin crept as quietly as he could in his great boots and peeked at the sleeping baby in Fili's arms.

Fili nodded. "For the moment."

"I heard you had a good night's sleep. Kili said that the human girl Sigrid, daughter of Lord Bard helped you last night."

"That's right."

"Are you sure that was wise? Trusting the human to care for your daughter like that?" Thorin asked.

"I didn't mean for her to help me, but," Fili closed his eyes and sighed. He was ashamed. No matter what Sigrid said, he felt terrible about not being able to take care of one crying baby. His own daughter. He had abandoned her, left her to cry in her room while he sat out in the hall. "I couldn't make Milly stop crying. It went on for hours and hours. She wasn't sick and I tried feeding her and she kept crying. Finally, I got so upset, I went out in the hall. I left my daughter alone in her cot and I went out into the hall to cry like a child." Fili was crying again. He felt so guilty.

Thorin placed his large hands on either side of Fili's shoulders. "Listen to me, Fili. You have nothing to be upset about, except perhaps not asking your mother or I for help."

"Uncle?" Fili felt like he was seven years old all over again. "Did you ever feel afraid? You know, when father died and you came to live with us?"

"Afraid? I was terrified," Thorin chuckled. "I went from being just a visiting uncle to, well, pretty much a father. Kili was only a tiny thing. I had held you boys before, but I was just uncle then. I was good with that. It was fun to hold you and play with you, but when your father died and I became responsible for your and your brother's well being, suddenly holding you took on a whole new meaning. I was scared to death. But I got through it, with your mother's help. Together we raised you boys. You don't have to be alone. Let your family help you."

Fili's cheeks were wet with tears. He needed to blow his nose. Thorin seems to sense this and he removed the formal coat and crown he wore everyday now and placed them on the table. He came back to Fili and removed the sleeping baby from his arms. "Let me hold this little princess of Erebor."

Fili went to the washroom. He blew his nose and washed his face. He saw the laundry hanging over the tub. Sigrid had washed Milly's clothes. He heard the front door open, then a surprised squeak from the other room and Thorin's deep chuckle.

"King Thorin," Sigrid curtsied low. "I'm sorry to walk into Prince Fili's apartments like this, but he was expecting me. I'm sorry I should have knocked."

Fili walked up to Sigrid and took one of the heavy baskets from her arms. "It's alright, Sigrid."

She was red in the face.

"Fili tells me you helped him out last night by taking care of Milly so he could sleep. That was very kind of you to do," Thorin said.

She was surprised by the King's kindness. Her father had met with King Thorin many times and her Da seemed to think Thorin polite, but untrusting and cold. And now, he was here, thanking her. "I am happy to help the prince and princess," Sigrid said.

"Uncle, I've asked Sigrid to stay with me a few days and teach me how to care for Milly. Help me get back on my feet." Fili felt better than he had in a long time. He was rested and now he knew that Thorin had once felt fear of caring for a young dwarfling. Somehow that knowledge eased the weight of being a new unprepared father from Fili's shoulders.

Thorin raised an eyebrow. "You know your mother or I could help you."

"I know, but you are very busy and you know how mother is. She would just take over and not let me learn."

Thorin laughed. "I understand, my boy." He stood and handed Fili his daughter back. "Take care and behave you two."

Sigrid blushed, but Fili laughed. His first real laugh in weeks. "Of course, Uncle."


	10. Chapter 10 Lessons Learned

Sigrid helped Fili to learn the subtle signals Milly would make before getting upset. She showed him how to properly bathe the baby and how adding a few drops of lavender oil in the water was very calming to babies. Fili became more and more comfortable at caring for his daughter. Dis, Kili and Thorin visited every day, Kili usually twice a day, to see how Fili was coming along with his parenting lessons, as Kili called them. Sigrid took the opportunity to teach Kili a few things about baby care as well. He protested good-naturedly, but learned what Sigrid had to teach him. She suspected he would do just about anything to help his brother, but before he just didn't know what to do. Dis was not happy with Fili's choice of Sigrid at first instead of her, but by the end of a week, she and Sigrid were on friendly terms.

She and Fili had long conversations and got to know a little more about each other. They shared childhood stories and dreams of seeing the former glory of Erebor and Dale restored. Sigrid never would have guessed she would have such an opportunity to get to know the prince.

Her father had been very patient in letting Sigrid stay a week longer in Erebor than she had originally had planned, but he was requesting his daughter be allowed to return to her home.

"As if I am being held prisoner here," Sigrid scoffed when she read her father's letter. "But, I suppose it is time. You are doing such a wonderful job taking care of Milly."

Fili was starting to panic again. "But what do I do once I'm alone?"

"What you've been doing. Besides, you're not alone. Kili, Thorin and your mother will help you. And, if you really need my assistance again, just send word for me and I will come back." Sigrid was surprised by her own boldness. This was the prince of Erebor for goodness sake! She was earnest in her offer, though.

"Thank you, for everything," Fili said. "You saved my life." Sigrid blushed. "I mean it," Fili continued. "I don't think I could have survived much longer as things were going. You saved my life and Milly's. I have something for you as a thank you."

"Oh Fili, you don't have to give me anything. I was happy and honored to help."

"It is the dwarven way to bestow a gift of thanks, especially for the extent of aid you have given me."

"No, Fili, really, you really don't have too," Sigrid began, but it was too late. A box was thrust into her hands. She opened the box and found the most beautiful necklace. It was two delicate silver chains, one was slightly shorter than the other and they were joined at the ends with one clasp. Two small emeralds sat at the center of each chain. "This is too much."

"I want you to have it. Please?" He normally might have offered something much larger, but he had gotten to know Sigrid over the week. She was not one for finery. She was a simple girl, despite her father's heritage and high position. So he picked out something small and simple. If Thorin had seen his choice of gift and its lack of extravagance, it probably would have offended the king.

Fili smiled a sly smile. "You know, it's very offensive in dwarven culture to turn down a gift of thanks. You don't want to be offending the Crown Prince of Erebor, do you?"

"Of course not," she looked into his face and saw him smiling, teasing her. "Thank you, Fili. I accept your gift." Fili lifted the necklace from the box and reached up to her neck. She was a head taller than him, so she bent down so he could clasp the necklace around her. He thought it looked stunning on her long, thin neck.

Sigrid didn't quite know what to say or do after that, so she turned her attention to Milly. "Good bye, sweet one," she said. She bent down and kissed the baby's head. "Be good to your Da."

Fili then kissed Sigrid on the cheek. "Bye Sigrid."

"Good bye, Prince Fili." She curtsied and left, closing the door softly behind her. She threw her bundle of clothes over her shoulder and walked as quickly as she could. She needed to get home. It would be good to be with Da, Bain and Tilda again, but she knew she would miss Milly terribly and if she was honest with herself, she would miss Fili too.


	11. Chapter 11 Dinner in Erebor

Sigrid was surprised to get a letter from Erebor only a week after returning. It was from Fili, but it was more of a progress report than a letter. He told her how much better he and Milly were getting along. The first night he was on his own with her, she had cried a great deal, but they had gotten through it and his mother had been willing to watch Milly so he could get a few hours sleep the next day. He also said Thorin suggested hiring a nurse for Milly during the daytime so Fili could return to his duties.

Another letter came a week later. It was very similar in content; an update on how Milly and he were getting along. Sigrid was happy to know they were doing well. A letter came for her every week for four weeks and Sigrid always replied to them, congratulating Fili on his accomplishments. The fifth letter came a few days earlier than Sigrid expected it and instead of the usual progress report, it was an invitation to dine with Fili and his family in Erebor.

Sigrid was happy to accept the invitation. While she loved the letters, she missed Milly and Fili. Her father escorted her to Erebor and saw her settled into a private room before he left her, reminding her he would return the following afternoon to collect her.

That evening, Sigrid was led to the family's private dining room by one of the King's guard.

"Welcome, Sigrid," Fili greeted her when she walked in. He looked much better. His face was bright and his hair was full and golden. His eyes still had some dark circles, but that came with the territory of caring for an infant. Once Milly started sleeping through the night, Fili's quality of sleep would improve.

She was about to bow when he took her by the shoulders and kissed her on her cheeks in greeting.

"It's good to see you again, Prince Fili. You are looking well."

"Thank you for ignoring the bags under my eyes," he laughed.

Dis was there, holding Milly. Sigrid went up to Dis and bowed.

"My Lady," she said.

Dis waved her hand at Sigrid, "No formalities in this room, just Dis, if you please."

Sigrid smiled at her friend and looked at the little girl in Dis's arms. Milly's hair had grown a bit and had the tiniest, most delicate braid in it. She looked better than she did when Sigrid had seen her last. She looked happier and healthier.

"You've grown little one," Sigrid smiled, tickling the baby's chin.

Thorin and Kili joined them shortly after. Kili sighed and slumped down into his chair. "Those crooks," he mumbled.

"Kili!" Thorin called out in warning. "None of that here."

"Sorry uncle," Kili smiled. He saw Sigrid, jumped up out of his chair and ran to her. "So glad you could come for dinner!" he kissed her hand.

"Thank you, Prince Kili," she said.

"I thought I said no formalities," Dis said.

Thorin chuckled. He turned to Sigrid. "Welcome back Sigrid."

"Thank you, my Lord," Sigrid said before she could stop herself.

"What did I just say?" Dis said teasingly, but with slight annoyance in her voice.

"I'm sorry, but it's the king. I can't just call him by his first name," Sigrid blushed.

"Of course you can," Thorin said. "And I expect you to do so before dinner is over."

"Thank you, Thorin," Sigrid said.

Thorin grinned at her. "See, that wasn't so tough," he said.

They sat down to dinner at a small circular table. Big enough for the food, but small enough they could easily visit with one another. Sigrid sat between Fili and Dis. They asked polite questions about the goings on in Dale, her family's health and such. They all reported to Sigrid at how well Fili was doing caring for Milly and all expressed their thanks to her for helping him out so much. Sigrid blushed at all the attention.

By the time the third course began, the conversation had turned casual and stories and jokes were flying about. Sigrid enjoyed holding Milly again and cooing over the tiny baby. She finally got up enough nerve to ask about what dwarf infants were like. Was Milly a normal size? What were some of the developmental milestone ages and so forth. Dis answered all of Sigrid's questions and asked her own about the development of human babies.

When dinner was done, the family said their goodnights. Fili walked Sigrid, who was carrying Milly, back to her bedchamber.

"I can't tell you how pleased I was to see you wearing the necklace I gave you," Fili said.

"I never take it off," Sigrid admitted. "It's so lovely."

Fili blushed. "Thank you for coming to dinner. I know it's a bit strange, but I wanted to show you how well Milly is doing. How well we are all doing, thanks to you." Sigrid smiled. "Would you join me for breakfast in the morning?"

"I would love that. Thank you."

The desire to kiss Fili rose up in Sigrid, but she pushed it away. Instead she handed Milly back to Fili. "Sleep well," she said, stroking the baby's head.

"You too," Fili said. He turned and left. It was a bit of a more abrupt ending to the night than was probably polite, but he needed to move away from Sigrid. He had come too close to giving into a strange longing to kiss her.


	12. Chapter 12 Breakfast Talk

**Thanks to all of you for your kind reviews. It means a tremendous amount to me.**

**-Idrylla**

* * *

Fili collected Sigrid early in the morning, eager to tell her the good news - Milly had slept through the night! She was happy for him and tickled Milly's chin. Milly smiled with a toothless grin and Sigrid laughed at the sweet smile. Fili led her down many halls and up several flights of stairs. Sigrid knew she would still get hopelessly lost in the mountain if left on her own, but she knew enough of its vast halls to know she had never come this way before. Fili came to a door and pushed it open. It led to an outside balcony.

She blinked her eyes in the bright sun. The view was stunning. She could see the lake and Greenwood Forest, its green trees swaying lazily in the morning breeze.

"This is beautiful."

"It's a lookout post, currently unmanned, of course, and I thought it would be a nice place for breakfast." Fili grinned and gestured to the small table, two chairs and food basket.

Sigrid laughed. "How did you get all of this arranged so early in the morning?"

"Well, like I said, Milly slept through the night, but she woke up much earlier than usual. So, I decided to take advantage of the time."

She laughed again, sitting down in one of the chairs. She asked to hold Milly and Fili handed her the small child. Now free of the baby, Fili opened the basket and laid out its contents - sweet breads, fruit, fried sausages and hard boiled eggs. Sigrid balanced Milly on one knee while she ate.

"Do you have a craft?" she asked the prince.

Fili looked up at her in surprise. "Yes. There was never any guarantee that we would make it back to Erebor, so Thorin had Kili and I learn a trade so we could provide for ourselves and families. We both learned blacksmithing, like Thorin, but we also learned other areas of metal working, too. I specialized in engraving. I can add designs of all kinds into any metal work."

Sigrid listened in wonder. "I should like to see some of your work someday."

"During the long, cold winter months in the Blue Mountains, I also learned a little stone carving. I'm not great, but it helped pass the time in the evenings. Sadly, since arriving in Erebor, I haven't had the chance to do any crafting. Milly takes up all of my time these days. When she gets older, I'll get back into my craft."

Sigrid was glad to see Fili looked so pleased with his daughter. He was no longer scared of her and Milly was responding well to her father.

"What about you, Sigrid? Do you have a craft?"

"No. Not like you would call a craft, anyway. I can sew. Ever since I was young, I've sewn most of the clothes my family wears. I can also embroider. There isn't usually the time and it's not a practical thing to do on clothes that are going to get dirty quickly from work, so I don't embroider often, but I do know how." She stood and showed Fili the hem of her vest. He took the fabric in his hand and looked closely at the stitching. Delicate flowers attached by a twisting vine circled its way around the hem of the entire vest.

"You did this?" he asked. She nodded. "It's very lovely work. It is similar to the metal engraving I do, only I don't usually decorate swords with flowers."

She laughed and sat back down and watched Fili has he tore into some of the sweet bread. She realized this was really the first time she was seeing him as he really was. Just as Fili. When she first met him, he had just climbed out of their toilet, soaking wet and cold. She had no idea who he was at the time. She had passed him some of Bain's clothes to changed into. She had watched him as he helplessly sat with this dying brother, doing everything in his power to ease his Kili's suffering. He had protected her and Tilda against the orcs when they had attacked the house. By the time he finally left, she still had no idea he was a prince. It wasn't until Thorin's coronation that Sigrid had learned the true identity of the blond dwarf.

She didn't see him again until he started to come to Dale as Erebor's ambassador. She served as the mistress of all the diplomatic dinners, since her father became Lord of Dale. Fili had simply been a guest and all conversation had been formal and political.

Then she had found him, broken and exhausted on her last visit to Erebor. Their time together had been friendly, but slightly awkward. She had been there to help him.

Now things were different. He was not playing the part of a prince or diplomat and she was not the Lady of Dale. Right now they were Fili and Sigrid, friends. At least she thought of him as such and hoped he thought of her as a friend, too.

She liked his calm, easy going demeanor. He was friendly and easy to talk to. He was more reserved than his brother and was certainly more mature than he had been when he had first began coming to Dale as a diplomat, but she assumed fatherhood had forced him to mature. Becoming a parent did that. She had seen it among her childhood friends who had already married and had children.

"We must have been such a shock for you when we arrived in your home all those months ago," Fili chuckled.

"Yes. I had never seen a dwarf before. Your arrival was certainly a surprise, not to mention the manner of your arrival."

"Oh, don't remind me," Fili covered his face with his hands in embarrassment.

Sigrid laughed and adjusted Milly in her lap as Milly was doing her best to grab at Sigrid's plate of food.

"You were so good to us, though," Fili said. "You accepted us, clothed us and fed us without question."

"Well, you can be sure I had all sorts of questions running through my head, even if I never expressed them out loud." Milly was starting to fuss. Fili pulled out a milk bladder and handed it to Sigrid.

"You know," he said, "you don't have to take care of her. I can feed her if you want me too."

"That's alright. I want to. She is such a doll." Sigrid put the bladder to Milly's mouth.

Fili sat back and watched Sigrid as she held his daughter. He noticed and not for the first time, that Sigrid was wearing the same skirt and vest as she had worn when he first met her. That day they had climbed out of their toilet. That terrible day he had almost lost his brother to a poisoned wound. Sigrid had worn the same clothes when she had stayed with him that month ago. She wore the same clothes last night to dinner.

"You clothed us," Fili said, the truth dawning on him.

"What?" Sigrid looked up from Milly's face.

"When we invaded your home, you clothed us. All fourteen of us."

"Well, yes. Couldn't let you stay in those soaking cold clothes," Sigrid replied.

"But then we left. We left wearing your clothes," Fili frowned. "They were Da and Bain's clothes, mostly. We couldn't give you one of my skirts or Tilda's pinafore."

"Did you have anything left over after we had gone?" Fili asked. Sigrid turned her attention back to Milly. "Sigrid?"

"There wasn't much to start with. Whenever I managed to get new material, I made sure Da and Bain had plenty of shirts, vests and leggings and that Tilda always had at least two pinafores to wear."

"What about you?" "I use to have a second set of clothes, but it was at home when the dragon destroyed the town. All I got away with were the clothes on my back. These clothes."

Fili's head sunk down in shame. He was still learning the effects of the dragon on the people of Laketown. "I'm sorry," he muttered.

"Don't be. It wasn't your fault Fili. As terrible as the destruction was, it was for the best. Now the terrible beast is gone. We need never live in fear of it again." Sigrid searched his face, but he would not look at her. "All sides suffered a great deal, but what's done is done and I am happy as we can only look forward to a better life. It has already been a better life."

"Yes. Life will be getter, but Sigrid, I feel terrible about, well, you lost everything in your home."

"Only material things. The most important things, my family, survived. And even though we are low on material goods, my Da is a very wise man. As soon as he was made Lord of Dale, he sent messengers to Rohan and Gondor, inviting them to send their merchants to us until we can rebuild. They have not yet arrived, but as soon as they do, I will purchase new cloth and sew new clothes for my family."

"What about for yourself?" Fili asked.

"I will, after I take care of Da, Bain and Tilda first."

Fili stood suddenly. "I have a great idea. Come on." He packed the food back into the basket and took Sigrid by the hand. He led her back to the family living quarters and knocked on a door. Dis answered it.

"Good morning," she smiled at Sigrid.

"Mother, could you please watch Milly for the rest of the morning?" Fili asked.

"Of course," she took the sleeping baby from Sigrid's arms. "Fili, as much as I love and adore my granddaughter, I can't watch her all the time. Isn't it time you hired her a nurse?"

"Yes, mother. I'll take care of that this week. Thank you, Mother." He quickly kissed her on the cheek, then pulled Sigrid down the hall. "When does your father come for you?" he asked.

"This afternoon," Sigrid answered.

"We've got time, then," Fili smiled. Sigrid raised an eyebrow at him. Fili just laughed. He stopped walking at the end of the hall. "When I walk through the door, I'm Prince of Erebor, so forgive me now my formal politeness. It would be highly improper to be so casual with you in the presence of my people." Sigrid nodded.

"I understand."

He opened the door and went through, but as Sigrid passed by him he whispered, "Come on, I've got a surprise."


	13. Chapter 13 The Market

She followed him as he walked the maze of halls, bridges and rooms that make up his kingdom. He would point out various things to her - carvings on the wall, rooms that led to various parts of the mountain and so on. He greeted his people as they passed by, stopping to briefly chat with a few of them. It was clear they liked their prince. Finally Fili led Sigrid into a huge hall. The walls were lines with booths and stalls. It was a market.

"Oh my," Sigrid looked around. Colorful banners and signs hung from the stalls. There were benches and tables where dwarves sat together, playing games, eating and chatting. Dwarrowdams pulled at the hands of their children while trying to negotiate a good deal with the merchant. Sigrid could hear music off in the distance.

"Come on. There is someone I want you to meet. A good friend of mine." Fili led her to a stall. A small group of children stood around the table. They started to whispered to each other when they saw the prince and a human girl. "Bifur! Bofur!" Fili greeted the two dwarves sitting behind the stall.

"Prince Fili," one of them slapped Fili on the back. Sigrid recognized him. He saw her looking at him. "Ah! It's the daughter of our Laketown host," he said good naturedly and shook Sigrid's hand.

She laughed, "I'm Sigrid."

"Lady Sigrid," Fili said, putting emphasis on the word 'lady'. "Her father is Lord of Dale now."

"Forgive me Lady," he bowed. "I've never been much good at titles."

"It's alright and it's just Sigrid."

"I'm Bofur and this is my cousin, Bifur." He pointed to the other dwarf, who had a mass of wild black and grey hair and shockingly enough what looked to be an axe in his head.

Bifur spoke to her in a deep, gruff voice, but Sigrid didn't understand.

"He says hello and thanks for the food," Bofur translated.

"The food?" Sigrid asked, very confused.

"Aye lass. The food you fed us when we were in your home," Bofur said.

"Was Bifur part of your company when you came to our home?" She didn't remember.

"Aye. I'm surprised you don't remember. Most people don't forget when they meet Bifur."

Sigrid blushed. "Well, there were so many of you and I had never seen a dwarf before. I'm afraid I was overwhelmed by you all to remember too many specifics."

Bofur laughed a hearty laugh.

Sigrid turned to Bifur. "It's nice to meet you and get you know you in person."

He smiled at her, but said no more. She looked at the stall. Toys. Lots of beautiful wooden toys, pained every color imaginable. "You made these?" she looked to Bifur and Bofur.

Bifur nodded.

"Bifur does. I'm a miner, but had the day off, so I've come to help out. I like the days I get to spend at the market. I'm slightly jealous that Bifur gets to come here every day," Bofur said.

Sigrid looked at the toys. There was such detail in them. Bifur picked up a wooden toy that looked like an eagle. He held it up for her to see, then he turned a small crank at the eagle's claw and the wings began to move up and down in a graceful motion. He held it out to her. She took it in her hands and copied the motion, turning the crank. The wings moved and it looked like an actual flying eagle.

"This is beautiful," she said, handing the toy back to Bifur. "I've never seen anything so fine carved from wood."

He was grinning at her.

"We'd better move along. Good to see you again," Fili said.

"It was nice to meet you both," Sigrid said as she started to step away.

"Bye lass," Bofur said. Bifur spoke, too. Sigrid guessed he was saying good bye.

Fili led her further into the market, finally stopping in front of a large stall, piled high with reams of cloth. Sigrid's hand reached out and she touched the cloth in front of her.

"I didn't bring any coins with me," she pulled her hand away.

"Let me," Fili said.

"No, I can't let you do that," Sigrid turned to him.

Fili was about to argue it further, but he saw the determined look on her face and knew it would be fruitless to argue. He had seen that look before on his mother when she challenged Thorin. He had also seen it in his wife when she was determined to have things her way. Like when she told him he had to go with Thorin on his quest. He felt an ache in his heart. He missed Mailli.

He shook his head and composed himself. No matter what Sigrid said, he wasn't not going to let her return home empty handed.

"Alright, how about this? I pay now, but you pay me back as soon as you can," Fili offered.

Sigrid's jaw was set and she stared hard at him for a moment. "Alright. But I pay you back."

"Fair enough, now pick out what you want," Fili smiled. He had won. Sort of.

Sigrid turned to the cloth and began sorting through them. She picked out some soft, but sturdy cloth. They needed to be practical materials. She measured out what she needed, using the length of her arm as a guide. She wanted to make sure she took enough home with her. Fili handed her a bundle of soft cloth that was a pale shade of yellow.

"What do you think of that?" he asked.

Sigrid felt it in her fingers. It was a very fine cloth. "It's lovely."

"Why don't you measure out what you need to make yourself a dress," he said.

"No, it's too lovely. It's not practical at all."

"Forget practicality. You are the Lady of Dale and aid your father when he hosts diplomatic dinners. You need a dinner gown."

Sigrid gave Fili a glare, but inside her heart jumped. The idea of a beautiful gown to wear at formal dinners and parties was such a lovely idea. She had to admit she had always wanted a party dress. A smile spread across her face. She nodded and measured the cloth. She picked out the thread she would need and also got a new needle. The cost was more than she had coins for in her room, but Fili insisted and she promised to pay him the balance the next time she saw him.

Still, she was pleased with her purchases. Fili took Sigrid to a corner of the market near the musicians. He bought a few pastries and two ales. They sat together listening to the music.

"Prince Fili," Sigrid wiped a pastry crumb from her face. "It's very vice to spend the day with you like this, but don't you have, oh, I don't know, princely duties that you should be about, rather than sitting the market with me?"

"Not yet," he smiled. "I begin again next week returning to my duties. Thorin has been kind to give me so much time away so I could take care of Milly, but it's time I got back. That's why I need to hire a nurse for Milly. I've been putting it off for weeks now."

"I'd do it if I could," Sigrid said. "I adore Milly."

He smiled. "I hope whomever I choose, is as good with Milly as you are." Fili would have loved nothing more than for Sigrid to watch Milly, but everything about it was unthinkable. She was the Lady of Dale, not someone to be hired. And even if he could have Sigrid be Milly's nurse, it would have to change how he treated her. She could not simply be a friend if he hired her. She would be more of a servant, a hired hand, like the lass who did the laundry. No, everything about it was wrong, but the chance to see Sigrid everyday would have been nice.

"Time is short," Fili stood. "Your father will be here soon."

They stopped back at Dis's home to collect Milly before going to Sigrid's room. The first thing she did upon returning was pay Fili for the fabric, promising again to pay the rest when next she saw him. He chuckled, accepted the coins and walked her to the reception area near the front gate where her father would come to collect her.

Bard was waiting when they arrived. She curtsied at Fili and kissed the top of Milly's head. Then with a wave, she was off.


	14. Chapter 14 Correspondence

_Prince Fili, _

_I am making bold to write to you first and extend my thanks to you and your family for having me to dinner. It was a most enjoyable time. If life were different and you were not a prince and I were not a daughter of the Lord of Dale, we would be good friends and I would find no trouble in writing to you. As such, we do have our titles and I'm not sure if propriety allows me to write you anything less formal. I will be writing a letter of thanks to King Thorin and Lady Dis. I was unsure if I should write Prince Kili, but I have the feeling he would be upset at being left out, so I will send him a letter as well. _

_I realized once I got home that I had just purchased cloth from a dwarven merchant. I didn't know think your people did anything other than metal working and jewels. Are there spinners and weavers among your people? I guess you must do more than metal work as your friend Bifur made fantastic toys from wood. I hope I have not offended you. I am realizing I know so little of your culture. _

_My sewing is going well. I spend all of my free time making new clothes for my family. Da's new shirt is complete and now I'm working on Bain's. They need new clothes more urgently than Tilda or I do. _

_If I have over stepped my bounds upon writing you a friendly letter before you have written, please forgive me. Just burn the letter and I will not bother you again. Give Milly my love. _

_Your friend always, Sigrid _

* * *

_Dear Lady Sigrid, _

_I was delighted to receive your letter. If any rules of etiquette were broken, I'll never tell. _

_Thorin, Kili and Mother received their thank you letters and they were very pleased. Especially Kili. From now on, we write as friends. For that is the way I think of you and I hope you think of me as your friend as well. _

_As to your questions about our way of life, I am not at all offended. I'm rather pleased you are interested. I hope I do not bore you now. We dwarves love metal working, it is true. Most of us are trained in some area of metals. There are of course, miners, whom without, we would have no raw materials to create with. There are all the different kinds of smithies and there are the dwarves who work the great furnaces. I could write you a book on all the different jobs there are in order to create something as simple as a kitchen knife. But, I will not. If you are truly interested, there are books in the great library of Erebor that you could read. I'll leave that to you. _

_So yes, we dwarves love metal crafts and anything having to do with jewels, but dwarf cannot live by gold alone, so we have many who work the other trades. We do have spinners and weavers. We also have masons, toy makers, wood workers and carpenters. The only things we really do not do are raise livestock or farm. That is simply because Erebor has nowhere to do these things. My childhood home in the Blue Mountains was different. We had small gardens and some dwarves raised goats, sheep and other animals. _

_Here in Erebor, we trade a lot of raw material for raw material - ore for wool or grain. Erebor is still young in its rebuilding, but someday it will be in its full glory, as will Dale. Trades will be established and neither the dwarves of Erebor nor the people of Dale will be in want or need of anything. Thorin will see to that and if he doesn't, I will. _

_I'm glad your sewing is going well. I'm happy I was able to help you find what you needed. Don't neglect yourself, though. I hear word that your father's next formal diplomatic dinner will be in about six weeks time. I expect you to wear your new dress. I don't know that I will be invited, but I expect you to wear your new dress all the same. I will have Tilda write to me and tell me if I have too. _

_Milly sends you her love back. _

_Until next we speak or write, your friend, Fili._


	15. Chapter 15 The Dress and a Dance

**Thanks to you all for all the kind comments. I hope you enjoy this chapter. It's fun and it's got a dancing Kili.**

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The letters went back and forth every week between Fili and Sigrid. They were full of the news of their people and their families. Sigrid continued to ask about dwarven culture and Fili happily explained it in as easy ways as possible. Some of their cultures and traditions were very foreign to her.

Sigrid worked on her dress in secret. Not even Tilda knew about it. Sigrid planned to surprise her Da with it at the upcoming dinner. She had been delighted to learn Fili and Kili were invited as well as the elvish ambassadors from Mirkwood. Sigrid was more grateful than ever at Fili's insistence of her having a formal gown.

During their correspondence, Sigrid had sent the last of the coins she owed Fili. Having that debt paid off gave her more enjoyment with her new gown. When the night of the dinner arrived, Sigrid asked one of the ladies in waiting to help her with her hair. She took Sigrid's hair and twisted it all into an elegant bun, except for a small bit of hair at the base of her head, she curled and let hand down over her shoulder. Around her neck, she wore the necklace that Fili had given her. Never in her life had she felt more elegant. When she first entered the dining hall used for the formal dinners, her Da about fell over in shock.

She greeted each guest as they arrived, but she was eager to see Fili. Even though they had written many letters, she missed him. She missed his smile, his voice, his jokes, his stories and the way the beads in his mustache would swing as he moved his head. She heard his voice before she saw him as he was shown into the hall by a servant. Her stomach jumped. She hoped he would approve of her dress.

There he was. He was dressed in royal blue and his beard and mustache had matching blue beads that stood out strikingly well against his blond hair. Kili was by his side and similarly dressed, except in green. They both looked very fetching. Fili smiled when he saw Sigrid, but Kili's mouth fell open and he stared for a moment before regaining his princely composure.

"Lady Sigrid." Fili and Kili bowed together.

"You look beautiful," Fili said. Sigrid curtsied.

"Thank you, my Lords, and welcome." They had to move on to allow Sigrid to greet more in the line of guests, but Sigrid caught the wink Fili gave her.

The evening was pleasant. Sigrid was enchanted by the elves. She had never spent much time with them and found them to be much as she expected: tall, elegant, beautiful, and they had a gift for language and speaking.

During the course of the dinner, she would look over to Fili and was pleased to find, if slightly embarrassed, he was usually looking at her, too. After dinner, they retired to the great hall for drinks and talk. Music was played and there was some social dancing. Sigrid was surprised to be asked to dance by one of the elves. He was very tall, extremely graceful and made very pleasant conversation. The next dance was with Kili. He was a good dancer and he went on and on about how lovely Sigrid looked and he told her how Fili was seething while she had dance with the elf. He passed on Thorin and Dis's well wishes. While Kili was not as graceful of a dancer as the elf, Sigrid enjoyed the dance more. Kili seemed to have ten times the personality as the elf. Perhaps it was more fun because he was a closer friend. Either way, Sigrid enjoyed herself with Kili as a dance partner.

Bard pulled his daughter off the dance floor for a while and insisted she spend some time visiting with several important people. The night was passing and she had had no opportunity to speak with Fili. She was starting to worry she would not see him, but she had to put on a show of great interest in the elves topic of conversation. They preferred their home be called the Greenwood instead of Mirkwood. Sigrid promised from that time forward she would call it Greenwood and encourage all she spoke with to do likewise. She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see Fili with a formal, polite smile.

"Lady, Sigrid, may I have this dance?" he bowed to her.

"It would be an honor, Prince Fili," she curtsied back and took his outstretched hand. He walked her to the dance floor and held her waist in one hand and her hand in his other.

"Are you having a nice time?" he asked politely.

"Fili," she whispered, "enough with this formality. What took you so long? I've been waiting for you to ask me to dance all evening."

"Have you?" he asked. He seemed genuinely surprised.

"Of course. I've been wanting to talk to you."

"You seemed rather pleased with your elf friends," he said.

"Of course I seemed pleased. It would have been very rude for me to seem otherwise," Sigrid smiled. She wondered if Fili could possibly be showing jealousy.

"You look beautiful by the way," he smiled.

She felt her face get hot. "Thank you. I love my dress. I hope you approve of the end result."

His eyes quickly looked up and down her body. "Most certainly. It is a lovely gown you've made and you look so beautiful in it."

"I have you to thank. I never would have made anything so nice for myself without your encouragement. And I have enough material left over to make Tilda a new shirt."

"I especially like the color. It goes well with my blue, don't you think?" he asked with a sly smile, very pleased with himself.

"Did you plan that?" she asked.

"Of course!" He whirled her around the floor. He had never dance with Sigrid before, but he hoped it would not be the last time. Sigrid enjoyed dancing with Fili. He was more graceful than Kili and the best company she had had all night. She never wanted the dance to end.

"How's Milly?" she asked.

"She's doing well. The first few weeks with her nurse were tough, but now they are comfortable with each other. I wish you could come around to see her more. She seems to grow bigger every day."

"I wish I could see her too. She is such a doll."

"I've missed you, Sigrid. Visits like tonight are nice and I enjoy our correspondence, but it's not the same as sitting face to face, having a nice talk, sharing a story and laughing."

"No, it's not the same," Sigrid blushed again. "I've missed you too. If I knew when we could visit next, I'd have something to look forward too, but I never know."

"Milly's first birthday is coming up. Will you join us for the celebration?" Fili asked.

"I would love to. Something to look forward too. Something to count down the days until."

The dance ended and Fili walked her back to her father. He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles.


	16. Chapter 16 The Picnic

**This is one of my favorite chapters - lots of Kili and Fili being quite adorable. Hope you enjoy.**

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The summer day was perfect. Dis had suggested, or rather insisted that today be a holiday. They packed up enough food to feed an army of dwarves and rode their horses to a clearing at the base of the mountain. It was as close to a meadow as the mountain provided. Fili invited Sigrid to join them, so she came to them from Dale and Kili had invited Tauriel. Thorin had grumbled a great deal, saying he had too much to do to go on a picnic, but that morning as they rode out, he was just as excited as the rest of them.

They spread out large blankets, some in the open sun, some under the shade of the lone tree in the middle of the clearing. Milly, who had recently turned one, crawled all over the place. All of her favorite people were there. She would crawl about from person to person to play with them and be cuddled by them. Even Thorin would give a great, jolly laugh when Milly would sit with him.

Sigrid was in love with the tiny child, with her sky blue eyes, thick blond hair and a smile as wide as Kili's. Her hair was long enough now that Dis could put in some amazing braids. Sigrid wondered how she managed to keep Milly still long enough. When she had been younger and caring for her baby sister, Tilda, it was all Sigrid could do to even brush Tilda's hair, much less braid it.

Fili and Kili spent a long while sparing with each other. Sometimes with weapons and sometimes it was just all out wrestling. They convinced Thorin to join them and the three of them took on each other. No one could best the others and finally a draw was called. They all returned to the blankets, sweaty, exhausted and laughing. Dis and Thorin sat together on one blanket, in the sun. Thorin stretched out on his back and pulled his tunic over his eyes, blocking out the sun. It wasn't long before his snores could be heard. Dis had an embroidery she was working on. Sigrid could hear Dis humming to herself while she worked.

Kili and Tauriel dragged another blanket a ways off. They laid side by side, on their stomachs and propped up on their elbows. Sigrid couldn't hear them, but once in a while she would see them lean their heads together. She suspected there was some kissing going on and it made her smile. Sigrid was on the blanket under the tree, sitting next to a sleeping Milly. Fili plopped down next to his daughter and gave a great, happy sigh.

"You aright?" Sigrid asked.

"Oh aye. It's been a long time since all three of us went at each other like that. I remember the first time Kili and I beat Uncle. Of course, we were working together as a team and when it comes to Thorin, that is the only way I can best him, with Kili at my side. Whew!" he laid back onto the blanket and closed his eyes. Sigrid looked at the father and daughter sprawled out on the blanket. The sight of the pair of them made her chuckle.

"And what are you laughing about, lass?" Fili asked, sitting up.

"Oh nothing. Just looking at the two of you, napping on the blanket."

"I wasn't napping," Fili said with a frown. "Is my water pouch over there?"

It was and Sigrid held it out to him. When he took it, their hands touched and Sigrid felt a tingle in her hands. If Fili noticed their hands had touched, he made no indication and he eagerly drank his water before pouring a little of it onto his head. Sigrid laughed as the water dripped down his hair and beard.

"You having fun, lass?" he asked.

"Oh yes," Sigrid said. "This is a perfectly wonderful day."

Fili smiled and stretched out on the blanket again. His blue eyes were open and he watched the leaves moving in the gentle breeze.

"Can I ask you another question about your culture?" Sigrid asked. She had been waiting for a long time to ask this question and she figured now was as good a time as any.

"You can always ask, but I make no promises to answer," Fili smiled.

She took a deep breath. "I've heard," she began slowly, "that dwarves only ever love once in their life and that if their love dies, so do they." She looked at him nervously. He raised one eyebrow, but kept staring straight ahead, looking up into the tree. Sigrid regretted immediately asking her question. How could she ask him that? His wife had only died just over a year ago.

"And your question is?" Fili asked without any expression.

"Never mind," she said. "It was an improper subject. Forgive me and forget it."

"You want to know if that is true?" he asked.

"No. Forget it." She started to stand. "I'm going to go get," she started, but stopped when she felt Fili's hand grasp hers.

"Sit down. I'll answer your question," Fili said.

"You don't need too. It was wrong for me to ask." She sat back down but she couldn't look at him. He was still holding her hand.

"If I didn't want to answer, I'd just say so. But I will answer. What you have heard is both true and false."

She looked into his blue eyes. They were shining and he had a half smile.

"Dwarves are a loyal, passionate race. That passion drives us when we fight, when we craft and when we love. Females are few in number among us, so most dwarves go through life without finding love. But those who do find their love, love them with all their hearts. If a dwarf loses his or her spouse, it is devastating to them. And what makes it worse is that there is almost no chance that we will ever find someone to love again. So yes, usually a dwarf only ever loves but once in his life, but it does not mean that we aren't capable of loving again."

"I see," Sigrid said, doing her best to sound interested but impartial to the information.

"And yes, many dwarves die when their love does. How can you go on when the one you gave your heart to dies?" He sighed and for a moment was lost in memory.

"But your mother," Sigrid said. From previous conversations, Sigrid had learned that Fili's father had died when he was a small child.

"Mother could have easily followed Father in death because of her grief, but she didn't. She chose not to because she had Kili and I to raise. Often, if there are young children in the marriage, the living spouse stays to care for them, but not always. If it hadn't been for Milly, I could have died from grief after Mailli's death. I stayed for Milly. Mailli gave her life to bring Milly into the world. I won't let her sacrifice go in vain. I will raise our daughter." He looked at Milly with a sweet, loving gaze.

Sigrid had to swallow hard and blink back a few tears. "You're doing a wonderful job, too. She is such a wonderful child."

"Aye. I didn't think I could love someone as much as I do her. She is my light." They sat for a few minutes in silence, watching Milly sleep. "Why do you ask, Sigrid?" Fili smiled playfully at her. "You have your eye on a dwarf?"

Sigrid was mortified that she wasn't as impartial sounding as she hoped and that he might guess her heart's secret. So she played along with his tease. "Could be. I was thinking of Kili. If I can get him away from Tauriel, though."

Fili laughed. "Lass, I think you'd better quit now. There's no separating those two."

They both looked at Fili's brother and the elf. Their heads were very close together.

"No doubt they are discussing politics and trade routes between the two kingdoms," Sigrid said. Fili rolled over with laughter, causing Kili and Tauriel to turn around and look at them.

"What are you two laughing about?" Kili called over.

"Nothing, brother," Fili called back, "you can go back to your discussions on trade routes."

Tauriel blushed, but Kili laughed. "We will, thank you very much." And they laid back down on their blanket, their faces pressed close together.

Sigrid glanced over at Dis and Thorin. They were both snoozing in the sunshine. She didn't know what to do next. She felt slightly uncomfortable since Fili answered her question. Of course, she had asked, but now she didn't know what to say.

Fili reached into one of the baskets of food and pulled out an apple. He took a knife from his belt and cut a slice. He held it out to Sigrid. "Apple?"

"Thank you," she said, taking the apple slice and biting into it. Fili scooted slightly closer to her as he cut off a slice of apple for himself. Milly still slept between them.

"You know," Fili began, cutting another piece of the apple, "I thought my heart died forever when Mailli died. Yes, I have Milly and I love her dearly, but I figured I would live the rest of my life like my mother, missing my heart's love everyday for the rest of my days. It wasn't a happy thought, but mother has done it, so I could too." He passed another apple slice to Sigrid, but when she reached to take it, he took her hand and held it. "I was wrong to think I could never love again."

Sigrid's heart pounded in her chest and her hands tingled at his touch. She was afraid to even hope that he could want what she wanted. "I have found that I can love again." His fingers stroked her hand. "I love you."

Now Sigrid was absolutely certain her heart would pound its way out of her chest. "Really?" she squeaked.

Fili squeezed her hand. "Really."

She was having trouble breathing. "Oh, that's nice," she said as calmly as she could, "Because I love you, too."

They wore identical smiles. Fili wanted nothing more than to lean over his sleeping daughter and kiss Sigrid. And Sigrid wanted nothing more than to kiss Fili, but here? In front of his brother, his mother and the great King Under the Mountain? She couldn't do it.

"Come on, brother!" Kili yelled from where he and Tauriel sat. "Kiss her!"

This time it was Sigrid who blushed. Dis and Thorin woke from their naps and looked at the two couples. Sigrid could feel their eyes on her. Fili leaned forward and kissed her gently on the cheek.

Kili let out an exasperated sigh. "You call that a kiss? Do you need me to demonstrate?" He threw his arms around Tauriel's neck and gave her a big playful kiss.

"Kili!" Thorin barked, making Kili laugh.

"I don't need lessons from my baby brother!" Fili yelled back. Sigrid grinned, leaned into Fili and let him properly kiss her. Her whole body trembled.

Kili let out a triumphant whoop. When they separated, Sigrid shyly looked at Dis and Thorin. They both smiled at her. Their smiles weren't as friendly as Kili and Tauriel's but at least they weren't scowls. Fili leaned over and kissed her again, this time he disturbed Milly by accident and she woke up.

The little toddler grabbed at her father's beard. He looked down at her and saw her pretty blue eyes looking back at him. He laughed and picked her up, tickling her tummy. More kisses were passed between Fili, Sigrid and Milly, much to Fili and Sigrid's delight.

The afternoon was passing quickly.

"I think it's time we all headed home," Thorin said.

No one wanted the day to end, but they all had a long way to go to get home. The dwarves were going back to the mountain, Sigrid to Dale and Tauriel was headed back to the Greenwood. Sigrid did not want to say good bye, fearing this would all be a dream or that Fili would regret his words and she would never hear from nor speak to him again. However, Fili seemed quite as upset as she about parting each other's company. If only Dale and Erebor weren't so far apart.

"Please keep writing to me," Fili said. "You don't know how much I look forward to post days."

"I think I do know," Sigrid smiled. "I look forward to them too."

Fili pulled her away from the rest and helped her pack her horse. "We've been friends for a year now," he said, "so I feel I can skip some of the rules of politeness." He took a deep breath. "Sigrid, what would be your answer if I could ask you to marry me right now?"

"I would say yes. I love no one more than I love you, and Milly," she answered.

He reached out to her neck and ran his fingers along the emerald necklace he had given her. She shivered under his touch. He pulled on Sigrid's arms, bringing her face down closer to his. He kissed her again with a little more passion now that they were out of sight from the rest of the family. "May I start working on the proper negotiations then, to make you my wife?"

"Fili, if Thorin would perform the ceremony, I would marry you right now." Fili looked around to his uncle, excited by the news. "But," she spoke quickly, "seeing as how you are a prince, it probably wouldn't be proper for you to leave in the morning to go on a picnic, only to return that afternoon with a wife."

He grinned at her and nodded. "I suppose you're right. Can I just say, you have made me a very happy dwarf. I love you Sigrid."

"And I love you, too. Give Milly a kiss for me." They kissed once more then she climbed onto her horse. Fili was so very short next to her horse, but he reached up, took her hand and kissed it.

"Bye."

Tauriel rode to Sigrid's side. She would accompany Sigrid to Dale. They waved their goodbyes to the dwarf royal family and started home.


	17. Chapter 17 A Proposal

Months went by and the cooler autumn weather set in. The trees in the distant forest turned red, orange and gold. Sigrid loved to look out over the lake and the forest. She and Fili still wrote every week. Post day was her favorite day of the week. She could never get straight answers out of Fili in regards to his proposal. All he would say was that he was working things out.

Another formal diplomatic dinner was to be held at her father's home and an invitation was set to Erebor. To Sigrid's disappointment, it would not be Fili attending the dinner. It wasn't even going to be Kili. If it was Kili coming, she might have been able to get a few answers out of him, but it was going to be King Thorin.

Sigrid wore her yellow gown and her emerald necklace. When Thorin walked in, she gave her best curtsy.

"King Thorin, welcome."

"Lady Sigrid. I trust you are well?"

"I am your Majesty, thank you."

"I'm glad to hear it," he said and moved on. She did not have the chance to speak to him again that evening, although she saw her father and Thorin talking quite a lot. Sigrid could only hope.

The first frost settled over Dale on a very cloudy post day. Sigrid's breath was thick about her as she walked to the post stop. She wore a thicker woolen skirt and her new coat. Since the merchants from Rohan and Gondor had shown up, there had been more clothes available to buy and Sigrid found she didn't need to sew quite as often, so she had taken to embroidering the hem of her party dress.

She eagerly waited for the messenger from Erebor to arrive. The dwarf who brought the post each week was a nice young dwarf named Hunur. She saw him coming down the road.

"Lady Sigrid!" he called out, riding up to her. He slid off his pony. "Got a package for you today." He grinned.

"A package?"

He untied a large bundle from the back of his pony. "Aye, lass."

The package was heavier than Sigrid expected it to be. She couldn't imagine what was in the bundle, which had a great red wax seal with Fili's sigil on it. She passed on her letter to Hunur and thanked him. Then she walked home as quickly as she could without breaking into a run and looking very undignified.

It wasn't until she could shut the door and be in the privacy of her own room did Sigrid open the bundle. Inside was a letter, once again bearing Fili's wax seal and a large ream of cream colored fabric. It was soft and smooth with patterns woven right into the cloth. Sigrid ran her hand over the material before opening the letter with a trembling hand.

_Dearest Sigrid, _

_I hope this is enough cloth. If you are still agreeable to the proposal I made to you back in the summer, this is for your wedding dress. I've seen how handy you are with a needle and thread since you made your beautiful dinner gown. However, if you don't wish to sew it yourself, you are free to call upon any seamstress of your choosing. We have several in Erebor who would be delighted to sew your dress. They would give it a bit of dwarvish flair, if that interests you. _

_I also wish to invite you to Erebor two weeks from today. There is much to discuss and I really want to see you again. Kiss you again. It has been much too long since the picnic and I miss you. Send your reply with next week's post. _

_All is well here. The last of the winter stores are being gathered and the mountain will soon be ready for wintertime. Milly has been very fussy. Mother tells me it is because more teeth are coming in. Kili took a nasty fall the other day and twisted his ankle. He's fine, just moaning and complaining about having to rest in bed or in a chair all day. He's never been one to sit still for very long. _

_I hope you can be here in two weeks. I can hardly wait. _

_Your husband-to-be, I hope, _

_Fili _

Sigrid's hand was clutched to her chest. She was having trouble breathing. She would marry Fili? She could hardly believe it. She had wanted this for months, even before that glorious summer picnic when he had asked her if she would marry him. And now, it would be real.

There was a knock at her door. "Sigrid?" Her father opened the door and poked his head in. "Did you get something special from Fili?" he asked.

She ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. "Da! Da! You agreed?"

"I had several meetings and many letters with Fili and Thorin. It has taken time to work though all the proper protocols for such a union of a lady to a prince, but yes, dearest Sigrid, I agreed. Are you happy?"

"More than anything, Da! I'm very happy."

"And are you alright with becoming a mother straight away to his child from another woman?" Bard asked his daughter.

"Of course. I love little Milly and she isn't his child with another woman, it was his wife, whom he loved a great deal. He's a wonderful father and he has been a wonderful husband. I know he will be for me as well," Sigrid said. She believed that with all her heart. He would love her and be very good to her.

"I want your happiness. If you love him and this is what you want, it is what I want, too. I am happy for you." Bard hugged his daughter again. He knew it was the beginning of the end of his time with his eldest daughter. It was certainly a bitter-sweet time. He didn't want his little girl to grow up any more, but he knew he could be very proud. He had done his best to raise her and now she was off to become the wife of a prince.


	18. Chapter 18

The weeks could not go fast enough for Fili. Sigrid would be arriving this evening. He had been to the gate five times today already, hoping to find the sun was ready to set, but every time he went the sun was always high in the sky. Did the sun always move so slowly? He was nervous. It had been almost five months since he had seen Sigrid last. She had agreed to marry him and he couldn't believe how lucky he was.

He sighed. There were still several hours until sunset. He would go back and finish the work he had left behind. He took one last glimpse of the horizon before turning back to the mountain and there she was. A small party on horseback was approaching the gate. Fili waved at them and Sigrid waved back. She kicked her horse into a run and reached the gate soon after. She hopped off her horse and curtsied to Fili.

"Lady Sigrid, welcome," Fili said. He wanted to abandon all protocol and throw his arms around her and kiss her. Instead he bowed.

"Prince Fili, I thank you for your invitation. It's good to see you again."

The rest of her escorts rode up and dismounted. They all bowed to the dwarven prince, who greeted them warmly and invited them in to the reception room. He had refreshments brought to the guest and polite chat was exchanged. When the guests were ready, they were led to the throne room to be received by the King Under the Mountain.

Thorin was very gracious in his welcoming. "I'm afraid tonight's feast isn't ready yet. We weren't expecting you until later," he said.

"Sigrid couldn't wait, so we set our much earlier than we intended," Bard answered.

Thorin laughed. He went to Sigrid and took her hands in his. "Welcome, lass. I can't tell you how happy I am that you will be joining our family. I will do everything in my power to make sure your life here is a good one."

"Thank you, my Lord. I know that I will have a very good life with Prince Fili and all his kin."

Thorin gave her a smile. "Have you seen my niece yet?" he asked.

"Not yet, but I imagine she has grown a great deal these last few months," Sigrid answered.

"Indeed she has," Thorin nodded. "If you all are ready, you will be show to your rooms to relax from your journey and I will see you all this evening at the feast."

Everyone bowed to Thorin and then were led away to the guest rooms. Fili took Sigrid's arm in the formal way he had been taught to escort a lady. He was happy to be with her again. "You're looking very lovely."

Sigrid giggled. "How long do we have to keep up these formalities?" she whispered.

"Just until I get you out of these public halls," he whispered back. It was several minutes of walking the many halls and rooms, making polite conversation about the weather before they reached the more private halls of guest rooms. As soon as they could, Fili let go of her arm and took her gently by the hand. She squeezed his hand back and gave him a smile.

"I've missed you," she said.

"I've missed you, too."

"You said we had much to discuss?" she asked him as they approached the guest room she had stayed in every time she had come to Erebor.

"Yes, many things, but it's not going to be easy. I'm afraid we'll have escorts most of the time. This is your room while you are here. Do you need some time to refresh?" Fili asked.

"No, I don't need time to refresh," she gently nudged him in the side. "I want to go see Milly very soon, but first, I have something to ask you. Come on in and leave the door open." Sigrid walked into her room. Her belongings had already been brought up. Fili stood just inside the door, leaving it open, incase her father or any of their guards or escorts came for them.

She opened one of her packs and pulled out the large ream of white cloth he had given her two weeks ago. She held it out to him.

"Do you not like it? We can go to the market. You can pick out anything you like," he spoke quickly, embarrassed that he had made such a choice without her. Of course she would have wanted to pick out her own cloth. He was beating himself up in his head.

"No, Fili. I love it. It is beautiful, which is why I brought it here. I don't trust myself to make a dress with such fine material. You mentioned there are seamstresses here. Perhaps I can turn over the dress to them?"

Fili relaxed and gave a nervous laugh. "Oh, yes. Of course there are. I'm sure they would be very happy to make your dress for you. We don't have many weddings here. In fact, since coming back to Erebor, there has only been one wedding, so I know they would be very excited to make your dress."

"And a royal wedding at that," Sigrid smiled. "Are there traditional dwarven styles of wedding dresses?"

"Oh yes, especially for royalty."

"Then I will turn this over to them. It's one thing for me to sew myself a skirt, but it's quite another thing to sew a wedding dress."

Fili reached up to touch her face. "You're better than you give yourself credit for. Here, give me the material." He took the ream of cloth from her and tucked it under one arm. With his other hand, he took hers and they left her room.

"Ah, there you are!"

Fili and Sigrid turned around to see her father, Bard, walking up to them.

"Hello, Da."

"Good day, Lord Bard."

"Where are we off to?" Bard asked.

Fili and Sigrid looked at each other and smiled. They would get no privacy during this visit. Well, they would marry soon and then they wouldn't have to worry about escorts any longer.

"We are going to the Room of the Prince," Fili answered. "I will have the seamstresses brought there and I will also have Milly's nurse bring her to us. There are also wedding details I would like to discuss and it will be good to have you there for those."

"The Room of the Prince?" Sigrid giggled. "Sounds very grand."

Fili blushed. "Not really. It's just a ostentatious name for the office Kili and I share."

The Room of the Prince was a cross between a small throne room and an office. There were two large chairs, thrones for Fili and Kili. There were also several desks, book shelves, and a variety of comfortable chairs. Kili was there, sitting at a desk, writing. He jumped up when he saw Sigrid walk in with Fili.

"Sigrid!" He started towards here, but stopped when he saw her father. "Lady Sigrid. It's good to see you again," he bowed.

Sigrid went up to Kili, "Silly. We are to be brother and sister, you know. Now give me a hug." Kili grinned and hugged Sigrid.

"Hey, I didn't get one of those," Fili pouted.

Kili laughed, but Sigrid turned back to Fili. "There, there, I was saving one for you. I just haven't had the chance to share it with you yet." She turned to Fili, hugged him and kissed him gently on the lips. "How was that?"

"Sigrid!" Bard called in warning.

Fili touched her face again, running his hand along her jaw line. "That was perfect." He took her by the hand again and led her to one of the chairs. Kili returned to his desk. "Klor?" Fili called.

Another dwarf, wearing a short red cape got up from a small desk in a corner of the room. He went before Fili and waited. Fili noticed Sigrid blushing. Obviously she didn't know Klor was in the room when she had hugged and kissed Kili and himself.

"Would you be good enough to have Milly brought here and also the head seamstress and her apprentice?" Fili asked.

Klor bowed. "Yes, my Prince," and he was off.

"That's Klor, Kili and my's valet. He's a good dwarf. Use to be a member of Thorin's guard, but on route to Erebor from the Blue Mountains, he got injured in an attack. So now, he helps keep Kili and myself in line," Fili explained.

Kili snorted from his desk. Fili ignored him.

Fili debated what to do next. Enough pleasantries had been exchanged, but he didn't want to get into the more serious discussions yet.

"So, Fili," Sigrid broke the ice. "When are you planning this wedding to be?"

"Well, that was one of the things I wanted to talk about with you. Due to various circumstances, and the fact that my uncle is the king and can make changes to the rules, some of the courtship time restraints have been lifted. According to our laws in the loosest sense, the correspondence we have been exchanging can be counted as time courting, which means we have been courting for over a year, now. There are a few ceremonial traditions that must be observed, but I'm hoping we can cover much of that during your visit."

"Ceremonial traditions?" Sigrid gave a sly smile. "What does that mean?"

"Some thing quite formal, I'm afraid. There must be a gift exchange to show our promise for each other during an official ceremony where we are promised to each other by our family. So, Thorin will present me to you and your family, and then you are presented to Thorin and my family. If we accept each other, we place courtship beads into our hair, which are worn until the wedding day."

"Sounds very complicated," Sigrid frowned.

"It's not really," Fili casually waved his hand. "My mother will teach you the braid you will place in my hair. That's about all you will have to do. We can get married anytime after that. So, it could be next week, or on Durin's Day, or we could wait until spring. Anytime."

"Really? Anytime?" Sigrid asked.

Fili nodded, but there was a knock at the door and moments later two dwarrowdams walked in. They curtsied before Fili and then turned to Kili with another curtsy.

"Thank you for coming, Besgra," Fili stood and picked up the white fabric. "This is Lady Sigrid, my intended, or will officially be my intended very soon. She has requested you to make her wedding dress."

Besgra bowed to Sigrid. "It would be an honor, my Lady. Have you any requests as to how your dress should be?"

"It will be with this fabric," Sigrid took the cloth from Fili and handed it to the seamstress. "And I would like it to be a dwarven wedding dress."

"I've never sewn for a human before. It will take some adjusting, but with the proper measurements and several fittings, I will be able to make you a beautiful gown," Besgra said. "If you will come to my shop later, I will take your measurements and get to work right away. In the mean time, my assistant and I shall draw up some ideas so that when you come, you may tell us what you like best."

"Thank you, I will come as soon as I am able," Sigrid said.

The two dwarrowdams bowed again and left. It wasn't a moment later that the door opened again and an elderly dwarrowdam walked in holding Milly. Milly let out a squeal when she saw Fili and she started to squirm in her nurse's arms. The nurse set Milly down, who quickly toddled to her father. "Dada!"

Fili scooped her up and gave his precious daughter a kiss. "Milly, look who's here." He turned so she could see Sigrid. Milly buried her head into her father's chest. Sigrid went closer and held out her hand to Milly.

"I can't believe how big you've grown," Sigrid smiled. Milly peaked her eyes around from Fili's chest, but after one look at Sigrid, she buried her face again.

"Milly, it's Sigrid," Fili said. He looked apologetically at Sigrid. "I don't understand."

"It's alright," Sigrid smiled. She patted the little girl's back. "It's been five months since we saw each other last. It's like a lifetime to one so young. Don't worry. We'll become friends again soon."

Kili came over to Fili's side. "Where's my favorite girl?" he peaked up over Fili's shoulder. Milly gave another squeal of delight and threw out her hands to her uncle. Kili grabbed Milly from Fili's arms and tossed her gently into the air.

"Sometimes I think she likes Kili more than she likes me," Fili said.

"That's because when we are together, we play. When you are together, your Dada. I've got the funner job," Kili said.

"Just wait until you have your own children," Fili waved his finger at Kili. "Then I will be the favorite uncle and your dwarflings will like me more than they like you." Fili turned back to the elderly nurse. "How has she been today?"

"She's a joy, as always, my Lord."

"Hadwerra, this is the Lady Sigrid. Sigrid, this is Hadwerra, Milly's nurse," Fili introduced.

The two women curtsied at each other. "It's very nice to meet you, my Lady," Hadwerra said.

"And I you," Sigrid said. "Milly is looking very well. Last time I saw her, she could barely crawl and now she runs."


	19. Chapter 19 Earnest Love

The group spent the rest of the afternoon in the Room of the Prince. They watched as Milly toddled about from her father, to her uncle, to her nurse. She played with anything and everything she could get her hands on. There was lots of pleasant talk, mostly about Milly and some about the upcoming wedding. Sigrid asked Kili if he and the elf, Tauriel, were still discussing trade routes. Kili laughed, but looked a little sad, explaining he had not seen Tauriel since the summer picnic, either. They did have written correspondence, but it was much longer in between letters since her home in the Greenwood was so much further away.

Fili felt bad for his brother. He knew he wouldn't have done well if he and Sigrid hadn't been able to exchange their letters weekly.

Dinner was a festive, but formal affair. Thorin welcomed everyone and expressed his pleasure in seeing his nephew soon to be married to such a fine woman as Lady Sigrid. Toasts were made and good food was eaten. Fili and Sigrid would sneak in a kiss when they could, but mostly they just held hands under the table.

The next day was a whirlwind of activities. First Sigrid was taken to the seamstress shop where she was measured head to toe. She later told Fili she didn't think there wasn't a part of her body that they didn't measure. They had also drawn up many sketches of wedding dresses and Sigrid looked through them all, discussing which designs she liked the best. They made her promise to return the following day for the first fitting. Sigrid was amazed that they would be able to produce anything so fast that there would be a fitting so quickly.

Sigrid also spent a few hours with Dis, learning how to do a courtship braid. Sigrid was terrified about getting this wrong and being rejected by the court of dwarves, but Dis told her it was nothing to worry about. She pulled out a small jewelry box and set it in front of Sigrid.

"You will need a bead to put into Fili's hair." Dis opened the box and pulled out a silver bead. She handed it to Sigrid, who looked the bead over. It had intricate carvings inlaid into it. "This is the bead I gave to Fili's father when we courted."

Sigrid looked into Dis's eyes. They were wet with tears, but Dis smiled. "I want you to have it, for Fili."

"Thank you," Sigrid whispered. She leaned over and hugged Dis. Dinner that night was family only, Thorin, Dis, Fili, Milly, Kili, Bard and Sigrid. Fili explained how he had arranged for the courting ceremony to be held at sunset the following day. It was soon, but he wanted to get it done and over with so Sigrid would officially be his intended.

It was a bitter-sweet time for Fili. He had done this not too many years ago with his lovely Mailli. He missed her, but now he had been just as long without her as he had been with her. Their time had been too short. He had resigned himself to live the rest of his long life without love. Who could have guessed that a human girl could make him smile again and remind him how nice it was to be loved. He was lucky to find Sigrid and he knew it.

He just wished he could skip it all and marry Sigrid, but as a prince, traditions could not be ignored. He hoped Mailli would approve of his marriage to Sigrid and to have Sigrid be mother to their daughter. Getting through this was going to be very difficult. He loved Sigrid, very much, but every ceremony, every tradition, reminded him of Mailli.

Fili and Sigrid sat together at the dinner table long after everyone else had left. Kili remained with them to act as chaperone. Fili was glad to have his brother. It was still hard to talk with Sigrid, hold her hand and even kiss her with his brother close by, but he'd rather his brother than anyone else. Kili knew how to become very interested in the cracks in the floor when Fili and Sigrid needed a few moments to share a kiss.

"Are you alright, Fili?" Sigrid asked after a while.

"Yes, of course."

"Are you? You've had a bit of a faraway look in your eye most of the evening."

Kili looked at his brother and nodded. "She's right."

Fili sighed. "I'm sorry, Sigrid. I try not to think about it, but with all of this, she keeps coming back to my mind."

"You mean Mailli?" Sigrid asked. She was not angry with him. Her words were frank, but compassionate.

Fili nodded. "I can't help but remember doing all of this not so long ago. What, three years ago, now?"

"You miss her a lot, don't you?" Kili asked quietly.

"Kili! What a question to ask in front of Sigrid," Fili reprimanded his brother.

"It's alright, Fili," Sigrid laid a hand on Fili's knee. "I know that I am to be your second wife and I know that you loved Mailli and had she survived, you would still be married to her, love her and be completely devoted to her. Never pretend like she didn't exist just to spare my feelings. She is your daughter's mother. A daughter that I'm being very honored to be allow into her life, to help you raise her. I will treat her as my own, but I know that she is from someone else you loved."

"Sigrid," Fili sighed. "You are too good. Yes, I miss Mailli and I wish she had never died, but she did and I've got to go on living and I've got to raise our daughter. But, life has been good to me and I have found someone who loves me and my daughter. Someone whom I love, too. But I will be honest. Marriage is hard and there is quite a bit of adjusting to do after marriage. You've got to learn to live with someone else. I've made the adjustments once and I'm afraid that for a while, at first, all of this is going to remind me of Mailli and you might be living in a bit of her shadow. But, I'm going to try very, very hard and start everything anew. You just might need to be patient with me."

"Of course, dearest. And you must be patient with me. I have not been married before. I don't know what married life is like and it will take time for me to learn and adjust, too."

"As long as we are working together, all will be well," Fili leaned into Sigrid and kissed her.

This time Kili did not look away. He watched them with an odd expression.

"I'm not sure whether to be bothered by your earnest feelings for each other or awed by them," Kili gave a small smile, but it quickly faded. "I want to love Tauriel like you two love each other, but that does not seem like it will be the case."

Sigrid put her arm around Kili's shoulder and pulled him close to her. "I'm sorry, Kili. Can you invite Tauriel to our wedding? Any opportunity to see her is welcomed, right? And you can dance with her at the feast after the marriage."

Kili grinned. "I already have the invitation written out for her. I'm just waiting for you two to decide on a date. As soon as you do, I'm sending the letter."

Fili laughed. "Well decide on that tomorrow. By tomorrow night, your invitation can be on its way to your lovely elf."


	20. Chapter 20 Engagement Ceremony

The following day was just as busy. Fili had his duties to attend as well as his part of the wedding arrangements. Tradition didn't allow him to see Sigrid after breakfast until the courting ceremony that night.

He and Kili helped each other get ready for the night. They would wear their matching formal clothes, Fili's in blue, Kili's in green. Kili put on a pout about getting dressed up for no reason. It wasn't his courting ceremony, after all. But Fili asked he do this for him, to support him, because he was feeling quite nervous.

When they walked into the throne room together, everyone stood and bowed. Then, when it was time, Thorin stood before them all. He was in his most formal clothes and crown, except for his cape. It was the cape with the Durin crest embroidered into it, signifying his position as head of the household and head of the line of Durin. When it came time for the wedding, his cape would be different. It would be the cape of the king. But tonight, he title was head of house. Fili was always aware that he would be king one day, but he knew in his heart that he could never be as confident in that role as Thorin. Thorin was every inch a king. His confidence in his position radiated off of him.

"It is not often," Thorin's deep voice rumbled throughout the throne room, "that we have a courting ceremony among the royal line. It has been a very long time since the last and it might be a very long time until the next."

Fili felt Kili slouch beside him. Kili was seeing his uncle had no plans on allowing Kili to marry Tauriel anytime soon.

"Be strong, Kili," Fili whispered to his brother. He felt Kili squeeze his elbow in reassurance.

Thorin continued to speak before the dwarven council, special guests, and family of those involved. "Would the intended please enter?"

A side door was opened and Sigrid walked out, accompanied by Bard. She wore her yellow gown and emerald necklace with her hair braided in a traditional dwarven style. Her eyes were sparkling. Behind her, to everyone's amazement was Tauriel, with Thranduil at her side. Tauriel wore a deep green gown and her red hair was done in long, braids and curls. She looked like she was floating rather than walking.

Everyone gasped, but none so loud as Kili. Fili could feel Kili shaking.

"She is here to support Sigrid?" Kili whispered into his brother's ear.

"No. She is here for you, my brother," Fili smiled.

The two women stood before Thorin. Bard spoke first, as his daughter would be intended to the crown prince.

"I am Lord Bard of Dale and I present my daughter, Sigrid, to you and your kin to become the intended of Crown Prince Fili of Erebor."

Thorin bowed to Sigrid and Bard. He turned to look at Thranduil. There was still some distrust and dislike between the two. If could be seen in their eyes, but they had agreed to put aside their personal feelings to allow for the happiness of their kin.

"I am King Thranduil of the Greenwood Silvan elves. I present to you and your kin, Tauriel, to become the intended of Prince Kili of Erebor."

Thorin looked at the two women before him and smiled. "They are acceptable to me and my kin." He waved a hand to his nephews. Only Fili approached. He stood in front of Sigrid. Dis took her place next to her brother. Thorin continued, "I present now to you, Crown Prince Fili, son of Dis and Prince Kili, son of Dis, my sister's sons." Kili looked up at his uncle, hesitating a moment before standing in front of Tauriel.

"They are acceptable to us," Bard and Thranduil said at the same time. There was a round of applause from the gathered audience, which included Thorin's entire company who resided in Erebor.

"Now the couples will exchange courting gifts to signify their promise," Thorin announced.

Kili looked panicked. He didn't know this was coming, so he hadn't prepared. Fili winked at Sigrid before approaching his brother.

"Don't worry Kili," he said, laying a hand on his brother's shoulder. He passed a box to Kili. "If it isn't to your or her liking, you can change it later. This is for ceremonial show." Fili went back to Sigrid. Being crown prince, he had to go first. "Sigrid, as way of a courting gift, I present you with this."

He held out a metal box of similar size as the one he gave to Kili to Sigrid. The box was polished silver and had intricate carvings of a vine of flowers that wove it's way around the entire box.

"Did you make this?" Sigrid quietly asked.

"I did. It is a treasure box. A place for you to put special things," Fili said.

"It's absolutely beautiful," she ran her finger along the vine on the lid of the box.

"Open it," Fili said.

Sigrid opened the box. It was lined with blue velvet and inside laid a small delicate silver chain with an emerald in the middle. Fili lifted the necklace out.

"Now you have three. One to represent each member of our family. You, me and Milly." Fili reached up to Sigrid's neck and attached the necklace, which hung perfectly with the other two chains she was wearing.

"Thank you," she sniffed.

"Do you accept?" Fili asked, with a touch of concern.

"Oh, yes," Sigrid had quite forgotten the traditional procedure. "I accept your gift, Prince Fili."

He smiled and relaxed a bit. She turned to her father, who passed her a simply carved wooden box. She handed the box to Fili. "Here is my courting gift to you."

Fili opened the box and pulled out the shirt that was neatly folded in it. The white fabric was soft, but sturdy. The shirt itself was simple enough, long sleeved with a neckline that opened from the neck halfway down to chest length, but attached by crisscrossing laces. What made the shirt so amazing was the embroidered hems around the base of the shirt, the neckline and the base of the sleeves. It was Fili's sigil, but in a deep blue, never-ending pattern all the way around.

"This is incredible," he whispered.

"There's more," she said, looking at the box again.

Fili placed his shirt over his arm and reached into the box to pull out a beautiful tiny dress, made of the same material, only embroidered with flowers.

"For Milly," Sigrid explained, as if the small dress wasn't enough of an explanation.

"You made a gift for my daughter as well?"

"This family is more than just you and me," Sigrid reached up to her neck and touched the three emerald stones that hung there.

He wiped away at a tear that had appeared in the corner of his eye. Then he cleared his throat and spoke clearly, "Thank you, Lady Sigrid. Your gifts are accepted."

There was a round of cheers from the crowd, but they quickly quieted down as Kili and Tauriel had their gifts to exchange.

Kili stepped forward. "Tauriel," he whispered. He looked at the box in his hands and then he looked to Fili. Fili nodded and his unspoken thoughts were expressed to his brother. Trust me. "Tauriel, this is my courting gift to you." He held out the box. She opened it and pulled out from the green velvet lined insides, two identical daggers. Their sharp, well polished blades reflected the light and their handles were a darker metal, carved and shaped to fit her hands. They were fantastic work, but Kili could see they were unfinished. He looked to his brother, who nodded again.

Tauriel held the knives, feeling their weight and balance. "These are fine blades. I accept your gift." Thranduil pulled from his cloak a long, cylindrical container and handed it to Tauriel. She turned and presented it to Kili.

"Prince Kili, here is my courting gift to you."

Kili removed the lid from the unusual container, and turned it sideways. Out slid four arrows. They were perfectly made, with golden feathers, and a dwarven style tip. Kili's eyes were wide.

"You made these?" he asked.

"I did," she smiled.

"I, I accept your gift. Thank you."

Again cheers filled the room. Fili's cheers for his brother were the loudest.

"As the gifts of courting have been exchanged and accepted, they will now place courting braids into their intended's hair," Thorin announced.

Four stools were brought to the front. Sigrid and Fili sat facing each other. Tauriel sat on a stool, but Kili stood, which kept him at Tauriel's eye level. First the dwarves put in the courtship braid into the ladies hair. Thorin passed Kili a silver bead for him to use. Fili kept his eyes locked onto Sigrid's the entire time as his fingers made quick work of the braid alongside her head, just behind her ear. When he was done, he kissed the bead just before he clipped it into her hair.

Then it was time for the ladies to braid the prince's hair. Sigrid was nervous. While Fili had been able to braid her hair without really watching what he was doing, Sigrid had to look at his hair and her fingers, making sure she was getting it in properly. It was slightly messy, but Fili was smiling, so she didn't worry about it too much. She pulled out the bead Dis had given her. She held it up for him to see before she kissed it and clipped it into his golden hair.

Fili leaned into Sigrid and placed his forehead against hers. "Thank you, Sigrid, my love."

"My dearest," she whispered back.

Thorin held out his hands to the two ladies, who took his hands in theirs. He pulled them both close. As he was standing on a step, he was taller than Sigrid, but still shorter than Tauriel. However, he looked larger than life. "My dears, I am very happy you will be joining our family. I could not be more pleased for my nephews, whom I have always looked to as sons. Now, I will look to you as daughters and I could not be more content. What do you say to a double wedding on Durin's Day?"

"Really?" Kili spoke up.

"I know it's soon, but why wait?" Thorin smiled.

"Why indeed?" Tauriel said. She took Kili's hand in hers. Their height difference, while could be almost comical, did not exist that night. They were betrothed and very much in love.

"I think that would be wonderful," Sigrid said.

"Thank you, Uncle," Fili said. He looked up to Thorin in every way and had always had the greatest of respect for him, but he also loved his uncle very much and no more than he did at this moment.

There was another great feast that night. The two couples sat near each other, holding hands with their newly betrothed.

"I'm sorry about the secrecy, Kili, but we thought it would be more fun," Fili said.

"I'm not complaining about the outcome, but I wish I had known about it. The gift you gave me for Tauriel is wonderful, and it's what I would have picked for her, but I would have liked to make it myself," Kili said.

"You don't have to use them. They are a substitute until you craft your own, but if you want them, they are unfinished, just waiting for you to personalize them," Fili patted his brother's back.

"I love them," Tauriel said. "I would accept a hunk of raw ore from you if it were your gift. Anything that make me yours and you, mine." She leaned down and kissed Kili's cheek. There were some calls from the crowd and banging of goblets on the table at the kiss. Fili and Kili exchanged identical grins, grabbed their ladies by the shoulders and pulled them into deep kisses. The room went wild.

"Boys!" Thorin called out. They broke off their kisses and looked at Thorin, who was smiling.

Over the next several days, Sigrid went in for more dress fittings. The seamstresses were a little worked up that the wedding was so close and Sigrid wouldn't be there for several of those weeks so she could have proper fittings for her dress. Sigrid promised them that no matter how well or ill it fit, she would be happy, but she would be back a week before the wedding and would come in everyday for a fitting if that's what it took.

Before Sigrid was to leave and return to Dale until the wedding week, Fili managed to pull her away from the rest of the group.

"Before you go. I've got something to show you." He took her by the hand and led her down a hall she had not been before. He stopped in front of a door. "If you like, this can be our home when we marry."

He unlocked the door and pushed it open. The room was dark, the air was slightly stale and a layer of dust covered the room, but it was neat. Sigrid walked in and Fili held out a torch. The room was lightly furnished, but what furnishings there were, were finely crafted. The first room was a large sitting room. Attached was a small kitchen, a large bedroom, several small empty rooms and a large washroom.

"This is a lovely home," Sigrid said.

"I must be honest," Fili said. "I had it made for Mailli, when I thought she was coming here. After I found out she had died, I could not live here and I took the apartment I currently live in with Milly. But, if you like it, or want it, we could make it our home."

"Fili?"

"I understand if you do not want it. We can have another apartment made for us. I am not trying to push you into Mailli's shadow. But, I made this with the idea of living here, with my wife, raising our children and you are to be my wife and we'll raise Milly and any other children, if we are blessed with them."

"Fili, it is a beautiful home and I am happy to accept it, if you want to share it with me."

"My lovely Sigrid, I want to share everything I have with you." He leaned into her and gave her a deep, gentle kiss. "It will be ready for you when we marry."

"A month. How can I survive that long?" Sigrid sighed before Fili kissed her again.


	21. Chapter 21 The Wedding

The week prior to the wedding, Sigrid packed up all her belongings, which really wasn't too much, and left with her father, brother and sister to go to Erebor. Her pack had more gifts in it than actual personal belongings. They were gifts for all of Fili's family, including Tauriel.

Fili was waiting at the gate for her when their small caravan arrived. Her things were taken to her guest room and guards were assigned to show Bard and his family to their rooms. Immediately, Sigrid had an appointment with the seamstresses. Fili whisked her away. The two dwarrowdams ushered Sigrid into the dressing room and politely ushered the Prince out of their shop. Sigrid was amazed at how well the dress fit, despite her previous fitting being more than three weeks ago. It was a beautiful dress and Sigrid stood in front of the polished glass admiring the way it fit. The seamstress, Besgra, tucked and pinned all over the dress. Sigrid was instructed to return in two days for the final fitting.

The week went quickly, as there was much to be done. Sigrid tried to spend as much time with Milly as she could, letting the little girl become familiar and comfortable with Sigrid. She and the nurse sat together on the floor of Milly's room and played with toys and dolls. After several days, Milly finally approached Sigrid on her own and sat with her and played. She let Sigrid feed her and tell her stories. By the eve of the wedding, Milly and Sigrid had become friends again and Milly would run to Sigrid when she saw her.

Sigrid wasn't sure what old Hadwerra thought of Sigrid's joining the family. With Sigrid as Milly's new mother, the nurse's services weren't quite so needed. Of course she would be retained as Milly's nurse as there would be times that Sigrid would be called to perform duties as the wife of the crown prince at formal dinners and court appearances. She would be among the first to greet all guests to Erebor and play hostess to important visitors. During those times, Hadwerra would be needed, but the rest of the time, Sigrid would be Milly's caretaker, which she was very happy and honored about. She loved Fili's little girl.

Much to Sigrid's surprise, there was no feast the eve before the wedding, but an intimate family dinner. Tauriel had arrived two days after Sigrid with her elven entourage. It was a nice time. A calm breath before the chaos that would be tomorrow. Sigrid spent one last night alone in her own bed. Tomorrow night, she would share a bed with Fili and every night for the rest of her life. She sighed. That was such a lovely idea.

The wedding day was as chaotic as Sigrid expected. She and Tauriel were taken to a large, public bathing room that had been turned into a bridal room. Dis, Sigrid and Tauriel bathed in the hot spring waters before being dressed in their finest. Sigrid's dress was incredible. She was so happy she turned it over to the dwarven seamstresses. There was no way she could have made anything so beautiful. Tauriel brought her own dress, which she told Sigrid and Dis, had belonged to her mother, many years ago. The dress was white with green trimming.

Their hair was braided and their courtship braids were redone and made perfect. Dis wore a formal dress of royal blue and a cape to represent her position as Princess of Erebor, sister of the king and the highest ranking female under the mountain.

Sigrid realized quite suddenly, that once married, she would be the second highest ranking female and Tauriel the third. Even though she had been the Lady of Dale and was trained to perform formal diplomatic duties, being a princess in Erebor would be taking on a whole new meaning in position and responsibilities. She hoped she was up for the task, but she promised herself to do her very best and make Dis, Thorin and Fili proud.

The actual wedding was less of a ceremony than the courting ceremony had been, which surprised Sigrid.

Fili wore the shirt Sigrid had given him at their courtship ceremony. On top of it, he wore his blue formal tunic and a white cape with his sigil and other patterns that showed his position as the crown prince. Kili wore a similar outfit, but in green. They both looked very handsome and Sigrid was convinced she and Tauriel were the luckiest women to have ever walked Middle Earth.

Milly was held in Dis's arms, and dressed in the dress Sigrid had made for her. She looked adorable. She fussed a bit during the ceremony, calling out for her Dada. Finally Fili reached out to his daughter and Dis passed Milly to him. He held her during most of the ceremony and Sigrid felt that to be very appropriate. They weren't just becoming husband and wife, they were becoming a family.

Thorin addressed the assembled crowd, conducted the ceremony and in the end, the couples kissed. Fili reached up to Sigrid's hair and removed the courtship bead. In its place, he put in a new braid and bead, signifying Sigrid's marriage to him. She did the same for him. It was a braid that they would wear for the rest of their lives. She was forever marked as the wife of the heir of Erebor.

The feast after the wedding was the grandest one Sigrid had ever seen. Fili said he had never attended one so grand, even after Thorin's coronation. The day went on and on. There was music, dancing, food and lots of ale. By the end of the evening, there were many dwarves dancing on the tables and many more passed out under the tables. To Sigrid's amusement, even Thranduil seemed a little tipsy and was animatedly chatting with several dwarves from the council.

The two couples sat together, holding hands with their new spouse, stealing kisses and chatting with each other and the guests.

When the time came, Sigrid and Fili were escorted by the wedding party to their apartment. Milly would be spending the night with her nurse in her own home, leaving the newly married couple alone for their wedding night.

When the door shut and the noise of the crowd moved away to escort Kili and Tauriel to their new home, Sigrid let out a large breath.

"Finally, a bit of peace," she smiled.

Fili wrapped his arms around her. "Finally, we're alone." He pulled her into a kiss. "Welcome home, my beautiful wife."

"Home," Sigrid smiled. She looked around at the apartment. Fili had had it cleaned and more furnishings put into it. It was brightly lit and the fire in the hearth was warm. He took her by the hand and led her into their bedroom. He reached up to her necklaces and removed them, running his hands along her neck. She shivered at his touch. In turn, she unclasped his cape and removed it from his shoulders. They took turns gently removing the many layers of clothing they wore and with each less layer, they kissed the newly exposed skin.

"Fili," Sigrid said. "I'm nervous. I've not done this before."

"Good," he smiled. "I've not done this before either, with you. I'm nervous too."

"Then we'll be nervous together." They leaned into together for their deepest kiss yet.

* * *

**A very big thanks to you all for your comments and discussions. -Idrylla**


	22. Chapter 22 The Waterfall

Adjusting to married life would have been a lot easier without Milly. She wasn't not happy about the changes that had occurred in her little life. She spent more time with Sigrid and less time with her nurse now, which wasn't bad, just different. She also had a new home and a new room. These things were unfamiliar and she was troubled by them. She spent most of her time in Fili's arms, not wanting anyone else to hold her or help her. By the end of the first week, Milly was doing better, but then Fili had to return to his duties as prince and on his first day back, Milly spent the entire day crying. Nothing Sigrid did soothed the dwarfling. Sigrid understood and was patient, but it was a very hard day for both of Fili's girls.

Truth be told, Sigrid was jealous of Kili and Tauriel. They had their week together to do as they pleased, but Sigrid had to spent most of the week trying to help Milly adjust to her new life. As hard as it was, she knew Milly would eventually regulate to their new home and new way of life.

It took a good long month before they settled into something of a comfortable routine. Fili and Sigrid were forced to wait until after Milly had gone to sleep each night before they could spend any time together. Even holding a simple conversation was proving difficult and usually waited until Milly was asleep. Unfortunately for them, by the time Milly was asleep, they were too tired to do much more that sit quietly and talk before they both fell asleep themselves.

By the end of each day, Sigrid was exhausted. She didn't remember Tilda being so demanding, but then, she had had Bain and Da's help. Now she was on her own. Kili and Tauriel did not visit her often any more. Even after Kili was back to his duties, Tauriel was often occupied with other things. Dis and Thorin were always busy with their work and Sigrid found herself to be alone most of the time.

Six weeks into the marriage, Sigrid found herself sitting on her bed, a book in her lap and Milly sleeping next to her. Sigrid was weeping. She missed her family and was tired of being alone with Milly all of the time. She wanted time with Fili. To talk to him without interruption. To hold hands with him without a baby begging for attention. It wasn't Fili's fault or Milly's, Sigrid knew that. It was life with a baby, plain and simple. It was still hard, though, and Sigrid was having herself a little time to cry about it. She would have herself presentable by the time Fili got home that night.

What she didn't expect was Fili to be done early that day and find her crying.

He walked in to see Sigrid's face buried in her hands, her shoulders shaking. Milly was peacefully asleep next to her.

"Dearest?" he whispered and he walked up to her and laid a hand on her back.

Sigrid's head snapped up and she wiped at her face. She was mortified that he had seen her like this. "You're home earlier than I expected."

"What's the matter?" he sat next to her and rubbed at her back.

Sigrid smiled. "It's nothing. Silly really. Don't mind me. I'll wash my face and all will be well." She tried to get up, but Fili's hand pulled at her shoulder and kept her down.

"Sigrid, it's not nothing. You're crying and I've never seen you cry before." His blue eyes were deep with worry.

"Really. I'm alright." She tried to look away from his eyes as he searched her face for an answer. She sighed and leaned into his chest. "I'm sorry. I'm tired. That's all. Just tired. Milly didn't cry much today, just demanded a lot of attention. I'm afraid I didn't get all the chores done I meant to do today."

Fili laid his head on top of hers. He could still feel her shaking. "Dearest, Sigrid. Milly hasn't made things easy for us, has she? We've had but one night on our own since being married."

"It's not Milly's fault. I'm the intruder here."

"You are not the intruder. You are my wife and I have neglected you. This might be my second marriage, but it is not yours. You are a young newlywed and I have not treated you as such. Instead I give you a life with a baby and expect you to just pick up the roll of mother the very day after you wed. I'm sorry." Fili sighed. Sigrid had been so good. As soon as Milly was brought to them after their wedding night, she had taken on full responsibility of Milly and she had done wonderfully. But, because she had been so wonderful, he often forgot she had never been married before and was trying to learn to be a wife, a lover, a princess, and a mother all at the same time. It had been quite unfair of him to thrust so much upon her so quickly.

He would make it up to her tonight.

"It's alright," Sigrid smiled. She kissed his cheek. "I feel better now, having gotten some of that off my chest. I'll wash up and finish cleaning and when Milly wakes, we can either go to dinner in the dining hall or if you want, I can fix us something quickly here."

"No," Fili said. Sigrid turned to look at him. "I've got a better idea. Tonight we ask Kili and Tauriel to watch Milly. Then, you and I can spend the rest of the night alone."

"We can't ask Kili and Tauriel to keep Milly all night."

"Why not? They are Milly's uncle and aunt. Besides, I'll make them a promise that after they have their first child, we will return the favor. They may not understand the importance of that offer now, but they will." Fili stood up. "I'll be back in half an hour. Have Milly's things gathered together."

And with that, Fili was gone. Sigrid stood up, shocked and unsure what to do. She felt terrible for asking Kili and Tauriel such a favor, but she knew Fili was right. When the time came, she and Fili would be more than happy to watch their little niece or nephew to give them a night of peace. Sigrid ran from the room to Milly's room. She grabbed a bag and started stuffing changing rags, several outfits and two nightgowns into it. She put in Milly's favorite doll and blanket.

Milly wasn't needing milk bladders any more, which made feeding the small child much, much easier. She gathered Milly's bowl, spoon, and the clean, but stained feeding rag that she wore while she ate in an attempt at keeping her clothes clean.

She heard Milly start to cry from the bedroom and Sigrid ran in to collect her.

"Hello sleepy," she lifted Milly into her arms. "You are going to have a wonderful night with Uncle Kili and Aunt Tauriel. They'll feed you, tell you stories and have lots of fun with you." She filled up a bowl with hot water and gave Milly a quick sponge bath before changing her into fresh clothes, brushing and braiding her hair. Fili returned just as Sigrid finish the second tiny braid. Milly squealed at seeing her dada and laughed as he tickled her neck with his beard.

"Is everything ready?" he asked Sigrid. She nodded and showed him Milly's packed bag. "Good, because Uncle Kili is waiting."

The little family left their home and crossed through several halls until they reach the dark haired prince's home. Kili and Tauriel were waiting for them. Milly loved her uncle and eagerly went to his outstretched arms.

Tauriel went to Sigrid and hugged her. "Don't worry about a thing tonight. Sigrid, I'm sorry I've neglected you. I'm not much of a sister when I have left you alone all of the time. Things will change. You and I will spend more time together while our husbands are busy being royal princes."

"I would like that, but you don't have to, Tauriel," Sigrid stuttered. She still felt a little shy around the beautiful elf.

"I know I don't have to, but I want to. I hope you can forgive me and give me the chance to become your friend."

"You are my friend, sister. I look forward to getting to know you better," Sigrid smiled.

"Enough chatting," Kili said. "You two best be off. And don't forget, we expect you to return the favor when the time comes."

"Of course," Sigrid laughed. "Thank you."

Fili ushered her out. "Quick, let's go before Milly realizes what we've done."

Instead of going to the dining hall, Fili took Sigrid to the kitchens. His old friend and travelling companion was standing over a large, hot stove, stirring something deliciously fragrant.

"Hello, Fili," Bombur said.

"Bombur," Fili slapped the cook on his back, "I was wondering if I might be able to throw together some foods for a picnic with my lovely wife."

"Of course," Bombur smiled. "Help yourself and if there's something special you be wanting, you just ask."

Ten minutes later they were off, carrying a large basket of food. Fili led Sigrid deep into the mountain, finally emerging into a large dark cavern where a subterranean waterfall emptied into a lake of black water. The walls sparkled with gems glittering in the torchlight. Sigrid never would have imagined something so beautiful could exist inside a mountain.

"This is," words failed her. "I can't believe it. A waterfall, in the mountain!"

Fili squeezed her hand and led her to an alcove in the wall. There were blankets and furs on the ground. Fili straightened out the blankets and they sat on them, looking out at the waterfall.

"Kili and I were quite wounded during the battle, but as soon as the healers gave their consent, we were off exploring the mountain together. We found this place on our first day. Thorin said the lake is very deep. No one knows how deep it goes. As a lake, it's quite useless. There are no fish and there is no reason to cross it because there is nothing but the mountain's walls on the other side. But, he said in days past, on special occasions, the dwarves use to gather here and watch as a single boat would be paddled out to the middle of the lake. They would extinguish all the torches. From the boat, they would launch several small crafts with lit candles right onto the water. Then, a dwarf, in the boat, would sing. Sing to Aule and thank him for creating us and making the dwarves to be as they are. I hope one day Uncle Thorin will consider starting this tradition again. I think it would be quite glorious."

Sigrid smiled at the image. She snuggled into Fili's chest, keeping her gaze on the endless waterfall. "I'll bet you have a lovely singing voice, Fili."

He laughed. "Only for drinking songs, lass." He stroked her hair and breathed in her scent. "Do you sing?"

"I can," Sigrid admitted, "but most of what I know these days are lullabies. Surely you've heard me singing to Milly."

"Oh, yes, I have. You have a lovely voice." He felt bad that he really hadn't paid attention to Sigrid's voice when he had heard her sing to his daughter, at least not enough to note how lovely her voice was. That would change. From now own, every time he heard Sigrid sing to Milly, he would compliment her. He kissed her neck and she shivered. "I've not been a good husband. I'm sorry it took me so long to remember we need a little time to be husband and wife, not just parents."

"You're a wonderful husband. The best in the world."

She turned around to face Fili. In the dark cavern with only torches for light, shadows danced about his face and Sigrid thought it made him all the more handsome. She ran her fingers along his face and into his beard. Her hand went to the marriage braid and she tugged at it lightly, feeling the texture of his hair in her fingers. They pressed their foreheads together, and silently touched each other's face and hair before leaning in together for a deep kiss.

Sigrid melted into his arms. Dinner was forgotten for a while. The waterfall continued its endless labor of dumping cold mountain water into the black lake. And Fili and Sigrid remembered how much they meant to each other.


	23. Chapter 23 A Favor Returned

Sigrid had been wrestling with Milly all day long. The little toddler had too much energy and Sigrid felt like all of her energy had been sapped for the day. Her back hurt, her feet hurt and her head hurt. They were both eager for Fili to be home. Sigrid wanted nothing more than a hot bath to sooth her aching body and Milly needed someone to play with her. When Fili walked in, both of his ladies greeted him with joy.

"I love coming home," he said, scooping Milly into his arms. He wrapped one arm around Sigrid and pulled her into a kiss. His hand moved to her swollen stomach. "And how is this one treating you?"

"Heavy," Sigrid answered. "But well. We've had a good day, but Milly's got more energy than I can keep up with."

"Giving your mother some trouble, are you?" He tickled Milly's stomach. "I smell food. How about we eat and then you and I can play?" he said, swinging his daughter high into the air.

Just as they sat down to eat, there was a knock at the door. Fili got up to answer it.

Kili and Tauriel stood there with their infant son in Tauriel's arms. Kili held out a bag to his brother. "You owe us, remember?"

"Of course," Fili laughed and opened the door wider so Kili and his family could come in. Sigrid came to them and took the bag from Kili, while Fili collected young Torsten from Tauriel.

Tauriel looked worried. "Are you sure you're alright with this? I said we should probably wait, but Kili insisted. If it's too much for you Sigrid, you don't have too. We can do this another time."

"It's no trouble," Sigrid said. "Go and enjoy yourselves."

Tauriel hugged her sister-by-marriage. "I was happy to help you when you asked this favor of us, but I did not understand why you needed time without Milly. I do now. Thank you, so much."

"Come on Tauriel," Kili pulled at his wife's hand. "We'll see you in the morning," he said to Fili."

Sigrid sighed as the door closed. She was very happy to return the favor, but why tonight of all nights? She had really looked forward to that hot bath. "Oh well, " she sighed under her breath. "Look Milly. Torsten's come to visit."

Milly looked at the baby in her father's arms. "Sten?"

"That's right." Fili settled back down at the table. "Let's finish eating, then we can play with Torsten."

"He's hardly big enough to play," Sigrid said, lowering herself back into her chair. Her back muscles were tight and protested at much movement.

They finished eating. Sigrid washed the dishes while Fili and Milly took Torsten to the sitting room. Milly was showing Torsten her doll.

"Baby," Milly said.

Fili adjusted his hold on his nephew so Torsten was facing out and could see Milly running around the room. Sigrid came in and sat down in her favorite chair. It was soft and comfortable, although getting out of the chair with her large stomach was near impossible. She watched as Milly brought all sorts of things out of her room to show her tiny cousin.

"Did you have a good day?" Sigrid asked. She rubbed her hands over her eyes.

"It was fine. The usual." He looked to his wife. Her hair was limp and she had large bags under her eyes. She hadn't been sleeping well. The baby was so large and uncomfortable on her small frame, she was having a very hard time finding comfortable sleeping positions.

Since finding out she was expecting, Fili had experienced every emotion under the sun. He had been elated. He had been terrified. He had cried tears of sorrow and tears of happiness. But most of all, he was afraid. Afraid of losing Sigrid in childbirth the way he had lost Mailli.

His mother insisted that Mailli had been dreadfully sick from the start and Sigrid was doing very, very well. She told him that no matter how well things were going, the end of the pregnancy was always the hardest. Right before the baby is born, when it's at its biggest and heaviest, it's hard on the mother. Fili trusted his mother, and Oin and the midwife, who all insisted things were looking well, but he still couldn't put to rest some of his fears.

Now Sigrid, who had been so happy and strong during all these long months, was tried and irritable. She ached and she couldn't sleep. She put up a brave front and through some unknown source of strength, continued to care for Milly and their home and last week had even hosted a diplomatic dinner with ambassadors from the Kingdom of Rohan, but he could see how worn out she was. Kili said Tauriel had been the same way in the weeks leading to Torsten's birth. He was eager for the baby's birth, but at the same time, he wished he could delay it forever. He was just too scared.

"Sigrid?" Fili spoke quietly. She looked like she had fallen asleep right in the chair. She opened her eyes and lifted her head. "Why don't you go to bed?"

"No, I couldn't leave you to take care of Milly and Torsten alone."

"Sure you can. Don't you think I can manage?" he smiled at her.

Sigrid smiled back. "I know you can, but it wouldn't be fair of me to do that to you."

"We'll be fine. Go get some sleep." Fili stood up and held out his hand to Sigrid to help her out of the chair. She took it and with some difficulty, stood up.

"Do you know what I really want?" she stretched her back. "A hot bath."

"Then go take one. I'll take care of everything here."

"If you need me, you know where I'll be," Sigrid shuffled her way into the washroom. She turned on the hot water and watched it slowly fill the tub. She poured some scented oil into the tub and undressed. The sight of her stomach still surprised her. It was so large and round. When the baby moved, she could see it under her skin. It was an amazing sight. She wrapped her arms around her stomach and squeezed it in a hug. It was her and Fili's child. It would join their family very soon. The midwife had said it could be anytime in the next couple of weeks.

Sigrid was very excited. She wanted to see her baby so badly. She assumed it would be blond and blue eyed, since both its parents were. She wanted to hold it, count its toes, kiss its head. But, she was also quite scared of the childbirth. She had been with Tauriel when Torsten was born. It looked very painful. Sigrid had felt very honored when Tauriel invited her to assist with the birth. They had become good friends over the last couple of years and had been so excited when Tauriel found out she was with child and then it became even more exciting when Sigrid found out several months later that she was with child too.

Tauriel had carried Torsten for a full year, since elves and dwarves gestations normally lasted around a year. So they had been able to predict when Tauriel would give birth. With Sigrid, things were a little less certain. Being human, her body was only prepared for nine months of gestation, possibly ten. But dwarflings needed a year, so she worried that the baby might not be fully developed by the time her body was ready to deliver. It was a real possibility, but Oin and the midwife had been keeping careful track of her. They were saying all should be fine, but they would not know until the baby was born.

At her last exam, three days ago, they had said it would probably be soon. So, she waited with great anticipation for the signs her body should give before being ready to deliver. So far, other than not being able to sleep and a constant back ache, her body showed no sign of being ready.

She lowered herself into the water and sighed. The hot water felt so good. She leaned back against the tub, closed her eyes and rubbed at her stomach. She wasn't sure she would ever get out of the tub. It was too nice in here.

Fili laid Torsten down in the cot they had prepared for their baby when it arrives. Then he played with Milly. Sigrid had been right, Milly was a ball of energy tonight. They ran around the sitting room, wrestled and played. After a while, Torsten started to fuss, so he collected the baby from the cot. He remembered how long ago Sigrid taught him what to do with a fussy infant. He chuckled to himself. He had been such a mess that day. Milly had cried and cried and cried. It took a calm, young human girl to teach him how to care for and love his daughter. Now that lovely human was his wife and they were expecting their own baby together.

First, he checked his rags. They were wet, so he changed them. Next he wrapped the baby tightly in his blanket. He took the baby to the sitting room, where Milly was playing. He sifted through the bag Kili had left and found the full milk bladder. They settled down onto the couch and Fili put the bottle into the baby's mouth. Milly crawled up next to her father.

"Baby eat?" she asked.

"Yes. Would you like to hold him?" Fili asked.

Milly nodded enthusiastically. Fili shifted Torsten into Milly's lap, although he kept one arm under Torsten's head. He let Milly hold the milk bladder.

"Baby eat!" Milly spoke with enthusiasm.

"When Mama has her baby, he will be little like Torsten. Will you help Mama take care of him?"

"I help," Milly said.

"It's a very important job to be a big sister," Fili couldn't help but smile. He had been a little older than Milly when Kili had been born, but he remembered his mother, his father and his uncle all saying the same thing. Being the older sibling was very important and he had taken his new job very seriously. He wondered if Milly would feel that same sense of accountability.

He heard the washroom door open. Looking up, he saw his wife, heavy with their child, looking fresh and relaxed. She wore a simple night dress that stretched tightly at the largest part of her stomach. He loved that. He had loved seeing her grow. He had missed it all with Mailli and felt grateful he had been allowed another chance at fatherhood. He had stayed with Kili when Tauriel had given birth, but if they let him or Sigrid wanted him, he planned on being with her when she gave birth. He didn't want to miss a single important moment in his child's life.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"Much, thank you." She had pulled her long hair back into a single plait that she wrapped around her head, like a halo.

"Mama! Baby eat!" Milly said.

Sigrid went around to see Torsten resting in Milly's lap, being fed by a very excited four year old. The baby probably would have gone to sleep if Milly had not been so enthusiastic in her declaration of the baby's activity.

"You are doing very well," Sigrid said.

Milly started to push the baby away. Fili was glad he had a good grip on his nephew and he pulled the baby back to his own lap. Milly hopped off the couch and ran to Sigrid, placing her tiny little hand on Sigrid's large stomach.

"Baby?"

"Yes, that's our baby. Soon, he will be here."

"I take care of baby!" Milly said. She placed a kiss on Sigrid's stomach.

Sigrid wrapped her arms around her daughter. "Yes, Milly. You will take very good care of the baby. You will be a very good big sister."

Fili grinned. He didn't know if Milly would ever have the bond with her sibling that he had had with Kili. He suspected few siblings did, but he also knew that no matter what, Milly would be a very good big sister.

*NAMESNAMESNAMES*

Note: Torsten is Old Norse for 'Thor's Stone'


	24. Chapter 24 A baby

Sigrid was panting hard. Fili used a cool rag to wipe the sweat from her brow. He sat behind her, giving her his support. Tauriel sat next to Sigrid and held her hand. Oin and the midwife were on the business end of things and speaking very encouragingly. Fili was tired, but Sigrid had been at this for hours. He couldn't possibly imagine how Sigrid continued on with such strength.

The next pain hit and the midwife encourage Sigrid to push. She did, a strangled cry escaping her lips.

"You're doing perfectly," the midwife said.

"So tired," Sigrid panted.

"It's almost over," Tauriel whispered.

Fili kissed his wife's head and spoke softly into her ear. "You are the most amazing woman, ever." A wave of sadness washed over him. He had not been there for Mailli. He had not been able to hold her or help her. He had not supported her, rubbed her back or whispered words of love into her ear. He knew she would have died had he been there, but he hadn't even been able to have the chance to say good bye.

Sigrid grunted as the next pain started. It woke Fili from his thoughts. He had to push all of that aside. Now was not the time for those thoughts and memories. Now was the time to give Sigrid lots of support. He focused on her, and tried to be strong for her. Suddenly Sigrid gasped, her body collapsed up against his and she threw her head back into his shoulder. Fili looked up from his wife's exhausted face and saw in front of him a tiny baby, covered in blood and slime, but alive and wailing with a healthy voice.

He laughed. He couldn't help it. He laughed. There it was. There in front of him was his son.

The babe was crying with gusto. The midwife wrapped him in a blanket and gave him to Sigrid. With Fili's help, she leaned forward and held her son in her arms. She was crying. They gave the family a few moments to bond with their son before Oin took the baby away to clean him up give him a good check up. Sigrid was worn out, but summoned the energy to deliver the afterbirth. Tauriel helped her to change into a comfortable night dress and the midwife cleaned things up. Fili stood next to Oin and watched him look over the baby. Oin finished his check up before Sigrid was settled, so Fili took the baby and went out to the sitting room, where Kili, Thorin and Dis were waiting.

Milly was sleeping in Dis's arms. Thorin was slumped in his chair, looking quite weary and Kili was standing in the middle of the room, bouncing his little boy. They stared at Fili.

"Well?" Kili finally said.

"A son," Fili said, tears falling freely from his eyes.

Fili walked to his brother and showed him the bundle of blankets. Kili threw a free arm around his brother's neck and pulled him into a hug. They stood there, for a long time, together, each of them holding their sons in their arms. Thorin came up to them and placed one arm around each of his nephews.

"I couldn't be more proud of you boys than I am right now. It doesn't seem that long ago that you were both noisy, rowdy, dwarflings but look at you now. Both of you fathers. Mahal has blessed our family. The line of Durin is finally finding peace and happiness. Congratulations."

"How's Sigrid?" Dis asked.

"Tired and sore, but fine, I think." Fili opened the door to the bedroom. Sigrid was sitting up in bed. Tauriel was adjusting some pillows behind Sigrid's back. Oin was feeling Sigrid's head for any sign of a fever.

"Where is my son?" Sigrid asked, smiling widely. Fili took the bundle of blankets and handed them to his wife.

Oin was done for the night and headed to the door. Thorin held out his hand and took Oin by the arm. "Thanks, old friend," he said to the white haired healer.

Oin, who was mostly deaf, didn't need to hear what Thorin had said. He could see the gratitude in the king's face. He smiled, patted Thorin on the shoulder and quietly took his leave. He would come back in a few hours to check on them all. For now, he needed sleep. He was getting too old for these kinds of long hours.


	25. Chapter 25 Reflection

Fili walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him. Sigrid was asleep in her bed and the baby was sleeping in his cot, right next to the bed. He went to Milly's room and peeked in. She had slept through all the excitement. She would meet her baby brother in the morning.

The lights in the sitting room were out. Only the fire in the hearth provided any light. Fili sat down on a chair, allowing himself for the first time since Sigrid's pains began, to relax. In a flash, his mind went through the events of the day. He remembered the long hours Sigrid labored. He had not wanted to leave Sigrid's side, but he had had to when the time had come for him to fetch Oin. On his way he had run into Kili. Kili had gathered Tauriel, Dis and Thorin.

Fili remembered how with each hour, Sigrid's pains became more painful, lasted longer and nothing he did really helped her. He remembered the feeling of helplessness as he watched her bear the pain and wishing he could take it all from her and bear it himself.

It was never far from his mind the danger Sigrid was in. The danger the babe was in. What Fili stood to lose if anything happened. He had lost one wife to childbirth. If it had not been for Milly, he would have followed Mailli in death. He didn't know if he would survive it again. If Sigrid had died... Oh, he didn't want to think about it.

Finally alone for the first time all day, every fear that he had pushed away so he could concentrate on helping Sigrid, came back to him. A fear like he had not felt since he and Kili lay dying after the great battle rose up in his body. He started to shake.

It was no secret among those that knew Thorin's nephews, that Fili and Kili shared a bond, but no one really knew how strong that bond actually was. There was no knowing how many times that bond had saved each other's lives and even they didn't really know how it worked, but tonight, Fili reached out to Kili and Kili felt it, because he was soon knocking quietly at Fili's door. Kili didn't wait for an answer. He knocked once and walked in. He saw Fili, sitting in the dark, his entire body shaking.

He was at Fili's side in a moment. He wrapped his arms around his big brother and held him. Fili's body curled up against Kili's and he let himself be held and rocked like a child. They cried silently. No words were needed between them. Kili knew Fili's thoughts. He said nothing to try and sooth away his fears, because they were very real. They acknowledged the fears and cried for them. Once Fili had faced and accepted the fears he had so long pushed away, he felt better. Those fears were past now and there was so much joy to look forward too.

"You going to be alright now?" Kili asked after several hours. He could sense Fili's need for comfort was over.

"Yes. Thank you." Fili embraced his brother once more.

"Anytime. I'm here for you, my brother."

"I know," Fili sniffed.

"You'd better get some sleep. You've got two dwarflings to look after now." Kili headed to the door, and laid his hand on the handle. He turned around. "Tauriel and I are willing to return the favor when Hrafn gets a little older and you and Sigrid need some time alone together again."

"Don't worry. We'll take you up on it. Night, Kili."

"Night Fee."

Fili slipped into bed beside his wife. He would need to make Sigrid another new silver chain with an emerald to add to her necklace. A beautiful wife and two dwarflings. How had he gotten so lucky?

**NAMESNAMESNAMES **

Note: Hrafn is an Old Norse personal name and word that means 'raven'. It seemed an appropriate name for a son in the line of Durin, the Ravenspeakers.

Thanks for reading!


	26. Chapter 26 A conversation with Thorin

The Princes of Erebor and their families were returning back to their homes after dinner. The entire royal family had dined together. It had been Sigrid and Hrafn's first time out of their home since Hrafn's birth two weeks ago. Kili, Tauriel and Torsten walked with them.

Sigrid and Tauriel had been in a deep discussion about the pains and joys of breastfeeding babies. Kili and Fili had rolled their eyes and smiled, letting the women talk, even though they were slightly uncomfortable by the conversation. When their paths split to go to their separate homes, they said goodnight and went their way.

The evening routine was in the process of being modified with the addition of Hrafn. Before, Sigrid would bathe Milly and then Fili would read to Milly before she was tucked away into bed. Now, Sigrid was often feeding Hrafn at the time of Milly's bath, which didn't bother Milly too much because she usually did what she could to avoid her bath.

Tonight, Sigrid suggested a new idea. She would bathe Hrafn first, then Milly, then she would feed Hrafn while Fili read to Milly. It sounded like a good battle plan to Fili and he did what he could to help.

Milly loved to help Sigrid care for Hrafn. The first day after his birth, Milly had been very unsure of the new baby. She watched him, poked at him, and tried to show him her dolls. The first time he cried while she was in the room, Milly had a look of complete shock, then she covered her ears against his wails.

Now Milly was very much a loving, big sister and enjoyed helping Sigrid while she bathed Hrafn. Milly stood by, watching over her brother, and handing Sigrid the soaps, oils and towels as requested. When Hrafn was cleaned and wrapped in his towel, Sigrid handed the baby over to Fili, who would dress his son while Sigrid bathed Milly.

Fili took the baby to the nursery and laid him in his cot. He dressed the baby in a warm sleeping gown and tightly wrapped him in a fluffy blanket. Fili had missed this newborn age with Milly. He was amazed at Hrafn's tiny size and funny newborn cry. Hrafn seemed to have no control what-so-ever over his little hands and Fili was worried he would injure himself with his own fists hitting himself in the face. Kili told him Torsten use to do that too, but they out grow it, which Fili was relieved to know.

Once Milly was dressed, they traded children. Sigrid sat in her chair to feed the baby and Fili sat on his chair with Milly on one knee and a book on the other. Some nights Fili would read stories in the common tongue and sometimes he would read in Khuzdul. At first, Fili worried about doing this. For one thing, his wife would not understand him and he was afraid of offending her by cutting her out of the conversation and secondly, none other than dwarves were allowed to learn the language.

Sigrid insisted he speak to his children in Khuzdul. She promised she was not offended nor did she have any desire to learn the language. She respected her husband's culture. And, she confided in him that she found it very exciting to hear him speak the deep guttural language and listen to the way his voice and chest rumbled as he spoke. He was quite satisfied with her answer and found great pleasure in sometimes whispering in Khuzdul into her ear during their more intimate moments. If she had picked up the meaning of any words, she never said.

Tonight's story was in Westron and Sigrid listened with half closed eyes while Hrafn nursed. Milly grew tired in her father's arms and by the time the story was over, she had fallen asleep and Hrafn had finished his meal. Both children were put to bed. Fili and Sigrid sat, cuddled together on their couch. Fili took Sigrid's hand and massaged it. She melted against his chest as he worked his magic on her muscles.

"Fili?" she said in a sleepy voice, "Did Thorin seem alright to you this evening?"

"Yes, I guess," Fili said, thinking back to dinner. "He was a little more quite than normal, I suppose. I figured he's just tired. Getting Erebor ready for winter is a stressful task."

"I can't imagine all that must go into planning that," Sigrid said. "I guess he could just be tired, but he seemed a little down. Maybe you should talk to him?"

Fili nodded. "Alright, I will." They sat together a while longer. "You'd better get some sleep," he helped Sigrid up, "before Hrafn decides he's hungry again. I'm going to go see if Thorin's still awake."

Sigrid nodded and smiled. "Night dearest," she pecked Fili's cheek.

He tightened his hold on her waist. "What kind of a good night kiss was that?" He pulled her into a deep, loving kiss and had to repress a smiled when she melted again into his face and body. When they finally pulled apart, Sigrid had a sleepy, contented smile on her face. He gave her hips a squeeze and let her go.

Once she was in her room, Fili left the apartment and headed to Thorin's. He wasn't sure if it was too late for his uncle or not and almost turned right around to go back home. But he stopped in front of Thorin's door and quietly knocked.

Several moments later, the door opened.

"Fili," Thorin greeted. "Is anything wrong?"

"No Uncle. I just wanted to, um, talk, I guess," Fili said. During the day, when they worked together, they were the King and the Crown Prince; almost equal in their authority over Erebor. When they were in their family, they had a nice, comfortable relationship as two adults. But one-on-one, Fili felt like a small dwarfling with his big, great uncle.

Thorin stepped aside and allowed Fili entrance. Thorin had removed his top layers of clothes and was down to a comfortable shirt and tunic. Fili remembered how when he was young, Thorin would come home from a long day at the forge, wash himself, have dinner with Dis, Fili and Kili and then he would sit near the fire, dressed similarly to the way he was now and he would smoke his pipe. Sometimes he sat quietly, pondering life, sometimes he read, but most often, he would tell stories and sing to his nephews.

Tonight the pipe was sitting on a table, with smoke lazily drifting towards the ceiling, but there was no book. Fili assumed his uncle had been in deep thought when Fili knocked at his door. Thorin wordlessly gestured to a chair before he sat down next to his pipe. Fili sat and suddenly wondered if this was a good idea.

"What can I do for you, lad?" Thorin asked. "Is the family alright?"

"Oh yes, they're all well. We're still trying to get used to having a baby among us, but we are all well."

"How's Milly doing with the change?" Thorin asked, sitting back in his chair.

"Better. She was nervous about him, at first, but now she's become a little mother hen."

Thorin chuckled and there was a moment of silence.

"Actually, Uncle, I came over to ask you how you're doing."

Thorin looked at Fili in surprise. "I'm well, Fili. A little worn out. You know how busy things have been. I keep thinking one of these years I'm going to take a long holiday."

"You should. Don't worry about a thing, Uncle. Kili and I can rule Erebor in your absence," Fili smiled.

"That's why I haven't left yet," Thorin smiled back.

"Ouch, Uncle. That hurt my princely pride. Don't you trust us?"

Thorin's smile disappeared. "Actually, I do, Fili. I know that you and Kili are more than capable." Fili suddenly became worried. Was Thorin actually thinking about leaving? Was he sick or dying? The idea of being in Erebor without Thorin ruling was a scary thought. Fili knew he could never be as good a king as Thorin and he was afraid of the day when that would finally be forced upon him. "You're not leaving, are you? I mean, are you well?"

"I'm fine, lad, and I have no plans to leave Erebor anytime soon. But, I want you to know how proud I am of you. You are a true prince, worthy of the line of Durin. Your people love you and respect you. You are a good husband and father. You are a better dwarf than me, many times over."

"I've learned from the best teacher," Fili said. He felt such pride at Thorin's praise. It was not something Thorin gave out lightly or freely. But he was also saddened by his uncles words. Did Thorin really think so little of himself and all the great things he had done?

"You have had many good teachers in your life," Thorin agreed.

"Uncle, I speak of you. You have been my greatest teacher. Balin taught me scholarly things, but you always made sure I learned more than what Balin taught. Dwalin was a good weapons teacher, but I learned more when you would step in and give me lessons or tips. You taught me about leadership, hunting, tracking and smithing."

"But there's more to life than that," Thorin said. "Despite not having a father, you have learned how to be a good husband and father. Your mother taught you well too."

"Mother taught me, yes, but I learned how to be a good husband and father from you. Even though you were brother and sister and not husband and wife, you always treated Mother with respect and you protected her. You may not have meant too, but how you treated Mother, taught me a lot about how to treat a woman. You were practically a father to me. I learned how to be a father from you. Do you remember when Mother first handed me Milly? She place Milly in my arms and I had no idea what to do or how to hold her. It wasn't mother who showed me how to hold a baby and feed it, it was you."

Thorin's eyes glistened with tears.

Fili continued, "I know Kili feels the same way. We've talked about it many times. You have been our greatest teacher in all areas of life and we are forever grateful for you."

They sat in silence for a while. Thorin seemed to need a few moments to compose himself, so Fili sat quietly and watched the flames in the fire dance.

"Thank you, Fili." Thorin's words were heart-felt.

Fili had wanted to ask his uncle a very personal question most of his life, but he had always been too afraid, but now, he felt he might be able to ask.

"Thorin? Why did you never marry?" he spoke quietly. He expected a strong tongue lashing from Thorin about minding his own business, but instead he watched as Thorin slumped into his chair.

"My life was never stable enough to take a wife. Responsibility laid heavily on be after the loss of Erebor. I was very young when my grandfather died and my father disappeared, leaving the responsibilities of caring for our people on my shoulders. And I bore it as well as I could. The care and safety of my people was more important than my personal desires to love or marry. Instead, I took joy in watching my sister fall in love, marry and birth children. Once you were born, I had no need to marry and produce an heir. Your mother took that burden from off my shoulders, whether she meant to or not, and I was happy. Her joy was my joy and I had two nephews to love, dote upon and teach.

"Then, when your father died, I wanted to help Dis. Her grief was terrible and for a while, I thought she would follow her love into death. I begged with her to stay and raise her sons and she made her choice to live and raise you. I stayed nearby and later moved in with you. It was my greatest honor to help raise you two rascals.

"No, Fili, the responsibilities of ruling our people, keeping them safe and raising you and Kili left me with no time or opportunity to find someone to love and marry."

Fili wiped his nose on his sleeve. "I'm sorry, Uncle Thorin. I never thought about all you gave up to take care of us." Fili frowned. He had never really thought about all the responsibility Thorin had borne before he was even of age.

"Don't be, lad, I'm not." Thorin leaned forward and laid a hand on Fili's shoulder. "Like I said, I think of you more as a son than a nephew. And you are a son to be proud of." Thorin smiled.

Fili's heart swelled. His greatest fear in life, aside from loosing Kili, had been being a disappointment to his uncle, whom he loved, respected and feared.

"But you seemed sad this evening," Fili said, remembering why he came to see Thorin in the first place.

"Oh no, not sad. Just reflective. Watching you and your brother with your own families is a sight I never thought I'd ever live to see, and what a sight it is. You and your brother will have your hands full when those boys of yours get older. I think they will give you and Kili and run for your gold when it comes to being mischievous dwarflings."

Fili laughed. "Yes, Kili and I have already discussed this possibility. We'll have to keep a close eyes on them."

Fili realized at that moment that Thorin was lonely. For years he had been surrounded by his family or his company. But now that Erebor was theirs and Kili and himself were grown, Thorin had been left alone. Fili felt terribly guilty. He had been so wrapped up in his own life, he had forgotten about how all of this had changed Thorin's life too.

"Uncle? You are more than welcome to my home anytime you wish. Sigrid and I would love your company and Milly loves to be told stories. She loves you a great deal and it would make her very happy if you came to visit. She and Hrafn need to learn the stories of our people and I am nowhere near the storyteller you are, Uncle."

"You don't have to concern yourself or entertain this old dwarf," Thorin smiled sadly.

"That's not what this invitation is about. I guess I'm being selfish, but I miss you. I know we see each other all day long and work together, but it's not the same. I miss you sitting by the fire, smoking your pipe, carving stone and telling us stories. My greatest memories of our life in the Blue Mountains were those simple evenings when we sat together, as a family. I miss that. It would make me very happy if you were to join us in the evenings. You would be welcomed anytime and as often as you wish. Please, Uncle?"

"It would be my honor to join your family in the evenings." Thorin's eyes looked to be filled with tears again.

"I cannot guarantee they will be nice, quiet evenings, but you are always welcome."

"Lad, look at this room. I have had too many evenings pass here in peace and quiet. I look forward to some dwarfling noise. And it's even better now, because when I'm tired of the noise, I get to come back home to my quiet rooms and leave you to deal with crying children."

Fili laughed. As much as he loved Sigrid and their wonderful life together, he missed the time with his brother and uncle. His family all lived just a few halls away from each other. They needed to spend more time together. He wanted to spend more time with Kili and his family. Fili was determined to be as great an uncle to Torsten as Thorin had been to him.


	27. Chapter 27 The Cake

"Mama?"

"What is it, my child?"

"When is Uncle Kili home?"

Sigrid sighed. They had been over this several times before. "Milly, I told you, Uncle Kili, Aunt Tauriel and Torsten will be home in six months. That's six full moons. The weather will be getting cold and the leaves in the forest trees will be turning colors."

"But when is that?" Milly asked.

"A long time, my little love," Sigrid gave Milly a hug. Milly wasn't the only one to miss Kili. For the last three weeks, Fili had been something of a wreck. Sigrid knew how much he missed his brother, but she hoped he wouldn't be like this until Kili returned.

Kili was in the Woodland Realm as ambassador from Erebor and guest of King Thranduil. He had taken his family because Tauriel desired to return to her home of many centuries and show off her beautiful son to her old friends. So a trip that would have taken Kili a few weeks had turned into an invitation to stay for six months and for Tauriel's sake, he accepted it. They would return in time for Torsten's second birthday.

Thorin and Fili were less than pleased about the situation, but they could do nothing to stop it. Instead ravens with messages were sent regularly to make sure Kili's guest lodgings didn't have bars on the door. Kili had assured them they were well and staying in very nice rooms, that Tauriel had been welcomed back by her old friends and guard and that Torsten was adored by all. Fili worried his nephew would be corrupted by elves and turned into a prancing forest elf. Kili promised Fili this would not happen. He had plans on teaching his son the finer points of belching during their stay in the Greenwood.

"I miss Uncle Kili," Milly said.

"So do I," Sigrid replied. "Come on, how about you help me in the kitchen. We are making Da's favorite tonight and I need help making the sugar cakes."

"Cakes?" Milly jumped up. "I want to help!"

Sigrid tied an apron around Milly and lifted her onto a chair so she could easily reach the table. Sigrid put the large mixing bowl in front of Milly and a wooden spoon. Milly went right to work.

"Why are we making cakes?" Milly asked.

"Because Da's been sad and we want to cheer him up," Sigrid answered.

"Why is Da sad?"

"Because he misses Uncle Kili, too."

Milly continued to ask question after question about every subject that came to mind. She wanted to know why Thorin had such a big chair in the Hall of the Kings. She wanted to know why it was called the Hall of the Kings and why the floor was paved with gold. She wanted to know how a huge dragon had fit through the front gates and why dragons liked sleeping on piles of gold rather than soft, comfy beds with pillows and a blanket.

By the time the cakes were in the oven, Sigrid could feel a headache coming on from Milly's constant chatter. She wondered what Milly's mother had been like as a child. She could not imagine Fili being this busy and talkative as a child and wondered if it came from her mother. She would never ask. Most of the time, Sigrid did not remember that Milly was not her own since she had been a part of Milly's life since she was five months old. But, once in a while, Milly would do something or get a look on her face that was not Fili at all. It was moments like that that Sigrid would remember Milly's mother and she hoped that Mailli approved of the way Sigrid was raising her daughter.

Milly ran off to play while Sigrid washed the dishes. She could hear Milly singing to her dolls. Hrafn woke from his afternoon nap and was set on the floor to roam about and play while Sigrid did some mending.

"Mama!" Milly shouted from her room. "Hrafn took Maizy!"

Maizy, Milly's favorite doll was currently being gnawed on by a teething Hrafn. Sigrid took the doll from her son's mouth and gave him a cool carrot stick from the cold box. The cold box was an ingenious metal box that Fili had constructed. Every morning they would fill the box with cold mountain run-off water that came through the taps. Sigrid kept several sticks of carrots floating in the cold water so Hrafn had something cool to chew on during the difficult months of teething. It had been, in Sigrid's opinion, a life saver.

With Milly's doll rescued from Hrafn's clutches, Milly went back to her game. Another little doll suddenly became Healer Oin and tended to Maizy's leg that was covered in baby saliva. Sigrid tried to get back to her mending, but kept having to get up to pull Hrafn away from his sister.

Sigrid could tell, even Hrafn missed Kili's family. He and Torsten were close. Even at a year in age, they loved each other's company. They had games that only they understood and even when they didn't play together, they seemed to keep each other in sight. Fili and Kili suspected they would be best friends, like their fathers. Now Hrafn was restless and more likely to get on his sister's nerves.

When the cakes came out of the oven, Sigrid let Milly dust the tops with fine sugar. Milly was very proud of herself.

"Look, Mama!"

"That's wonderful Milly. Now, can you be very careful and put the cake on the table?"

"I can!" Milly cried out. She gently picked up the pate and turned ever so slowly to the table. Sigrid could only watch in horror as Hrafn crawled right into Milly's path as she made her way to the table. Milly fell over Hrafn, dropping the plate with the cake. Hrafn cried out because Milly landed right on top of him. Milly cried out as she hurt herself in the fall as well as dropping the plate, which broke into many sharp pieces. Sigrid cried out, darting forward to rescue her children from the shards that now littered the floor.

She carried the children out of the room and placed them in Hrafn's room. She checked them over to make sure no one had gotten cut and that Milly's injury from the fall was nothing more than a bump on the rear. "Now, stay here while I get things cleaned up."

She wasn't mad at Milly at all. These things happen when little babies are underfoot. She just needed them to stay out of the way until she could get the shards of glass cleaned up. She could hear both children crying and she felt terrible.

Sigrid started sweeping up the mess. Poor Milly. She had worked so hard on those cakes.

"Sigrid? What happened?" Fili called out to her over the crying din.

"Fili, thank goodness you're home. Would you comfort the little ones while I finish cleaning?"

Fili turned to follow the sounds of crying and found Milly sitting on the floor, holding Hrafn in her lap; both of them were crying.

"Dada!" Milly cried out.

Fili went to his children, sat on the floor and pulled them into his arms. He dried their tears with his hair as they buried their faces into him. "Are you alright? What happened?" he asked.

"I dropped your cake," Milly cried. "You miss Uncle Kili and you're sad and I made you a cake and Hrafn made me fall and I dropped your cake," Milly spoke very quickly, crying and hiccupping through the explanation. "I'm sorry!" she wailed.

Fili pulled her closer and let her cry for a moment. Hrafn stopped his tears. He was in his father's arms and that was enough for him. "Milly, shh, shh, it's alright. I'm not upset with you."

"Your cake!"

"That was very nice of you to make me a cake, but it's alright."

"No, you're sad," Milly kept crying.

Fili rubbed Milly's back. "I miss Uncle Kili, but I'm not sad. I have you and Hrafn and Mama. You make me very happy." He stroked Milly's long blond hair. She looked so much like Mailli. Sometimes it pained him, but then he would remember how beautiful Mailli was and it made him happy to know Milly would look just like her mother. "Come on, let's go check on Mama."

Milly shook her head. "Mama told us to stay here. She's mad at me."

"I think Mama told you to stay here so you wouldn't get hurt. I don't think she's mad. Should we go check?"

Fili kissed his children's heads and stood up, holding one child in each arm. He left the room and went to the kitchen. The floor was clean of debris and Sigrid was working to wrap her hand in a bit of cloth. Several drops of red blood were on the floor at her feet. Fili deposited the children right onto the table. He rushed to her and grabbed her hand.

"Sigrid, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, just cut my hand on a shard. It's not deep."

Fili took the bandage from Sigrid and gently wrapped her hand for her. Sigrid smiled and let him care for her. Then she noticed her children.

"Fili, get them off the table before Hrafn takes a tumble."

"I got him, Mama," Milly said and indeed she had her arms around her brother's chest. He wasn't going anywhere. Hrafn was a mix of human and dwarf. He was longer and leaner than Milly had been at this age. Whereas Milly was all dwarf and strong enough to keep a toddler in a firm grip.

Fili finished the bandage and scooped the children off the table.

Milly came to Sigrid, keeping her eyes on her feet. "I'm sorry, Mama," she said. "I didn't mean to drop the cake."

"I know, Milly," Sigrid took her daughter from Fili. "It wasn't your fault. Thank you for taking care of Hrafn while I cleaned up the broken plate." She gave Milly a hug. "I made two cakes, remember? I was going to give the other to Uncle Thorin, but I have a better idea. How about we eat supper, then we take the cake to Uncle Thorin and see if he'll share it with us?"

Milly's face lit up. "Go to Uncle Thorin's?"

"That's right. Now, go wash up and we'll eat," Sigrid released Milly, who ran off to the wash room. "Thanks for your help, Fili."

He took her bandaged wrapped hand in his and stroked it gently. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Oh yes. Nothing to worry about." They ate their dinner and walked together to Thorin's home.

He was surprised to see Fili's entire family, but he smiled a great smile and welcomed them in.

"Look Uncle Thorin! I made a cake!" Milly announced upon walking in the door. Sigrid handed Thorin the cake. "I mixed it and put the sugar on top!"

"It's looks delicious, my child," Thorin said, inspecting the cake. "You did a fine job."

Milly beamed with delight. "Can we have some cake Uncle Thorin?"

"Milly!" Fili said. "It's Uncle's cake."

Thorin became very serious. "Yes, it is my cake and I shall do with it what I wish." He gave Milly a very solemn glare. "And I wish to share it with all of you." He smiled again as Milly's face broke into a wide grin.

She threw herself at Thorin's leg. "Thank you Uncle Thorin! Now we won't be sad."

"Sad?"

"Because we miss Uncle Kili."

"Oh yes," Thorin said, placing a hand on Milly's head. "We all miss Uncle Kili, don't we? No worries, child, the time will pass quickly and he will be home with us soon." Thorin reached out, took Hrafn from Fili's arms and tossed the baby high into the air. Hrafn squealed with glee. "Now, how about a song while your mama cuts the cake?"


	28. Chapter 28 Fire

Fili looked over his schedule for the day. It wasn't too bad. There was one dull meeting, an inspection of a newly excavated area of the mountain, and preside at a military rank advancement for a couple of young soldiers. Not a bad schedule for the day, but he was falling behind on several assignments. Not having Kili here meant Fili had taken on half of his duties and he was going to have a lot of work to make up once Kili was back. One more month. He just had to wait one more month.

From Kili's last letter, he was ready to return long ago, but stayed because Tauriel wasn't ready to leave and he loved her dearly.

Fili was walking down the hall to go to his first meeting and passed the reception area for those waiting to see Thorin over something or other. This was, as Thorin secretly called it, Complaint Day. It was a day set aside once a week for the dwarves to come and bring him their problems, concerns, news, or complaints. Most of the problems or disputes were quickly solved. The complaints and concerns were noted and when good news was brought, Thorin always rejoiced with his subjects. Fili asked why he didn't stop holding complaint day all together or give it over to the council, but Thorin said it was good for him to talk to the people directly and Fili knew the people appreciated their King's personal interest in them.

Next to the door that lead into Thorin's office was a desk with a harried looked old dwarf sitting behind it. A dwarrowdam was standing in front of him.

"I'm sorry, lass, there's no room on the King's schedule for today," the secretarial dwarf said.

"What about next week?" The dwarrowdam asked him.

"Nothing for two months. I can put you down for ten weeks from today."

"Ten weeks?" she exclaimed, "It's just, I'm an old friend and recently returned to Erebor. I only wanted to say hello, nothing more."

"You can say hello in ten weeks. Shall I put you down?"

The dwarrowdam shook her head. "No, thank you." She turned and began walking down the hall in the same direction as Fili was going. She was a pretty dwarf - red hair with some white streaks. Her beard and hair were styled simply, but nicely. She wore a mourning braid so she most likely was a widow. She looked to be about his mother's age.

"Excuse me?' Fili said as she approached him.

She had not seen him in the hall. She looked up in surprise, saw his insignia and went into a deep curtsy. "I'm sorry, my Prince. I did not see you there."

"It's alright. Did I hear you trying to get an appointment with the King?"

"Yes," she nodded. "But he is completely unavailable for the next ten weeks." She looked into Fili's face and her own face lit up in surprise. "Prince Fili?" He nodded. "Oh my, look at you! All grown up!" She laughed a sweet, jolly laugh. "Last time I saw you, you were no bigger than a loaf of bread."

Now it was Fili's turn to laugh.

"Oh, forgive me, Prince. I should not have spoken like that," she bowed her head.

"Don't be sorry," he was still chuckling. "I've been compared to the morning sun and a lion, but never a loaf of bread. I like that. I think it's a better description of me - homey, comfortable, and enjoys a good meal." She blushed. "Tell me," Fili went on, "how do you know Thorin and how did you know me when I was the size of a loaf of bread? Did you live in Ered Luin?"

"I did, but I've known the King since we were small children. I was born right here in Erebor. I was among the refugees that followed King Thror to the Blue Mountains. I lived there until not long after you were born and then I moved to the Iron Hills."

"Did you know my mother, Dis?" Fili asked.

"Oh yes, we were very good friends."

"Mother's here, in Erebor. Have you seen her yet?"

"No, I only just arrived here a week ago," she waved her hand in front of her.

Fili liked this dwarrowdam. She reminded him a lot of his mother, but without the responsibilities and stress of being a princess. "Come with me. We'll go find mother. Her schedule isn't quite so full. I'm sure she would be happy to see you." Fili led the way through the halls.

"Thank you, Prince."

"What's your name?" Fili asked.

"Oh, forgive me my manners. My name is Fire."

"Fire?"

"Yes, it's short for Sapphire, my father's favorite gem."

They found Dis in her office. She was sitting with Ori and they were pouring through some large, old books.

"Excuse me, Mother?" Fili walked in. "Hello, Ori."

"Hi, Fili." Ori smiled. "How's the family?"

"They're all well, thanks. Mother, this is," Fili's sentence was cut off by a yell from his mother.

"Fire!" she jumped up and ran to the red headed woman.

"Fire? Where?" Ori hopped out of his chair, startled and looked wildly around for the blaze.

"Dis! It's wonderful to see you!" Fire and Dis embraced.

Fili chuckled. "That's her name, Ori, Fire."

The two younger dwarves watched the two older dwarrowdams as they talked very quickly to each other.

"You look great!"

"So do you."

"When did you arrive?"

"Last week."

"What took you so long to come see me?"

"Didn't know where you were, did I?"

"Have you seen Thorin yet?"

"Not yet. His schedule's full."

"Tut. Forget schedules. We'll have dinner tonight."

"I can't wait to catch up with everyone."

"It will be like old times. What do you think of my Fili?"

"He's grown so much. The spitting image of his father, isn't he?"

"Oh yes, and he's got a family of his own now."

"Does he now? My, time really has passed."

"Where have you been this last century?"

"The Iron Hills."

Fili really needed to get to his meeting, but he didn't know how to excuse himself with the two women talking faster than water fell down a waterfall. Dis pulled Fire over to some chairs and they sat down, talking all the while.

"Ori?" Fili looked to his friend, "I've got a meeting to go to. Can you make my excuses for me if they ever come up for air?"

"Yes, of course," Ori said, suppressing a smile.

"I heard that!" Dis said, but the next moment, she was back into the conversation.

Fili chuckled and walked back out. He saw Ori pick up a book and start to read again while the two old friends continued to talk on and on.

The meeting was as dull as Fili expected it to be. It was about expanding one of the entrance gates so it could accommodate larger wagons that came in for trade. Fili felt the entire meeting was a waste of time. Yes. Expand the gate. Meeting done. But the various members of the council had many long, dull things to say about the gate before they finally decided they would meet again with an architect to see if it was even possible. Fili wondered why an architect wasn't in the meeting to begin with?

Next on the schedule was the inspection of the new area being excavated for living and shopping in the middle level on the north side of the mountain. The head miner, architect and engineer were there to show him around. Everything was going exactly as planned and on schedule. The engineer had a good sense of humor and kept the discussions light as he showed Fili where various pipes and vents were being run through. There was nothing official Fili had to do, just see their progress and tell them job well done.

Fili would have just enough time for a quick bite before going to the training grounds for the advancement ceremony. He passed Thorin leaving the dining hall as he was entering.

"Fili," Thorin greeted. "how's your day?"

"Not bad. How's Complaint Day?"

Thorin grimaced. "Could be worse, I suppose."

"Uncle, did you know a woman named Fire from back before I was born?"

Thorin's surprise was genuine. "Fire? Yes, I knew her. How did you know?"

"I met her this morning. It seems she just moved to Erebor from the Iron Hills. She was trying to get in to see you, but your schedule's full. I took her to mother. They were talking up a storm when I left them."

"Fire's here?" Thorin's eyes seemed to be looking far away, like he was chasing a memory.

"Yes. I think Mother's inviting her to have dinner with her tonight. She really wanted to see you." Fili was amused by the look in Thorin's eye. "Old flame, Uncle?"

That snapped Thorin back to the present. "What? No. Just an old friend. Haven't seen her in a very long time, that's all."

"Sure, Uncle." Fili was smiling. "I'll see you later."

Fili went to get some food. Thorin stood by the door for a few moments before he walked out. Fili was very interested now in who this woman Fire was. He wished Kili was here. They would speculate and probably find some way to spy on uncle to see if he canceled the rest of his appointments for the day. As it was, Fili had somewhere else to be. He quickly ate and went to the training grounds.


	29. Chapter 29 Reunion and Secrets

**Thanks to everyone who has left me kind reviews and comments. I hope you enjoy this chapter. It's got a lot more of Kili and Tauriel. :)**

* * *

"Uncle Kili! Aunt Tauriel!" Milly was jumping up and down in her excitement.

Fili breathed a sigh of relief. They were finally home.

Sigrid, Milly, Hrafn, and Dis were waiting to welcomed back Kili and his family. Fili and Kili embraced each other and held for a long time before letting go. They said no words. Words didn't have to be spoken between them. Sigrid and Tauriel hugged and hugs between aunts, uncles, mothers, sons, grandsons, niece and nephews went all around. There was lots of chatter of how the trip went, any troubles, glad you're home and the like.

They heard heavy boot-steps running their way. They turned around to see Thorin jogging to them. "Ridiculous meeting, keeping me away when I should have been here," he muttered as he ran up to them. Kili grinned and charged at his uncle.

Sigrid was glad dwarves were so thick and hearty. If her brother and Da crashed into each other the way Thorin and Kili did, they would have both ended up on the floor with many broken bones.

Thorin embraced Tauriel, much more gently and finally took Torsten from off the sling on her back and held him in his arms.

"You've grown, little one!" he chuckled. Torsten patted Thorin's beard. Thorin was visibly upset when Dis removed Torsten from his arms so she could hold him.

They all walked into the mountain together.

"Welcome home," Sigrid said to them all. "Did you have a nice stay?"

"It was lovely to go back and see everyone," Tauriel smiled fondly. "Torsten was loved by all. There hasn't been a baby in the Woodlands for almost a century, so as you can imagine, he was very popular and by the time we left, he had a hundred unofficial aunts and uncles."

Sigrid laughed, but Fili frowned. He didn't like the idea of a bunch of elves being Torsten's uncle. He was Torsten's uncle.

"It is good to be home, though," Tauriel said. "I love being in the forest again and among the people I grew up with, but it's not home anymore. Erebor is."

"I know what you mean," Sigrid nodded. "I feel the same way when I visit Da in Dale. It's lovely to be with him, Bain and Tilda, but it's not my home. My home is here, with my husband."

Fili and Kili looked at each other and grinned. Milly held Tauriel's hand as they walked.

"Well, we'll let you get settled in before we ask for stories and reports," Dis said, handing Torsten back to Kili when they had reached the family's living quarters. "See you at dinner." She kissed Kili, Tauriel, and Torsten on their cheeks. Tauriel had to lean way over for her kiss, but she was use to it. "So glad you're home safely," Dis said before leaving.

Thorin tickled Torsten's chin. "It's good to have you back. Kili, when can you report to the council about your trip?"

"Anytime, Uncle," Kili said, "although I would prefer it not be today."

"I'll see what I can arrange and let you know at dinner." Thorin gave them another grin before he too left to return to his duties.

Similar sentiments about being happy to have the family home again were given. Sigrid said bye to her husband, and she took their children back home. Tauriel took Torsten into their home, but Fili grabbed Kili by the arm before his brother could go inside.

"Kili, have I got some news for you," Fili was grinning.

Kili saw the mischievous look in his brother's eyes. He smiled back, "Oh? What about?"

"Not what, but who," he looked up and down the hall to make sure they were alone. "Uncle Thorin," Fili whispered.

"What about Uncle?" Kili asked.

"I can't tell you here, but we have to talk before dinner."

"Can you come back in an hour?" Kili asked.

Fili nodded. "See you then. It's great to have you back, Kee."

"It's good to be with you again, Fee."

Very few moments allowed them to use their old childhood nicknames for each other anymore and those times they did have were most precious to Fili. He gave his brother one more grin before he turned and left.

It was hard to get out of The Room of the Prince an hour later. One of the many teams of miners that reported to Fili had a long report to give today. Things were going well, and they had found a great new vein of gold they were inspecting to see if it was safe to mine. When he was finally able to get away, Fili all but ran to his brother's home.

When he was allowed into Kili's sitting room, he was practically bouncing in his excitement. Tauriel's hair was wet from her bath and she was wearing a long, flowing robe. She produced two cups of tea and passed them to the brothers, who thanked her. She leaned down to Kili's ear, "I'm going to go rest for a bit."

Kili nodded and was given a kiss on his ear before she left, shutting the door behind her. Kili's hair was wet too from his bath and looking as wild as ever.

"Feeling better?" Fili asked.

"It's so good to be home. I've missed Erebor." Kili leaned back in his chair, feeling it's familiar shape and texture. He leaned forward suddenly with a wide smile. "So, what's the news with Uncle?"

"A dwarrowdam named Fire arrived from the Iron Hills about a month ago. She knew Uncle and Mother back from when they were children and living here in Erebor."

"Before the dragon?" Kili asked.

"Yes. She lived in Ered Luin until about the time right after I was born, then she married some dwarf from the Iron Hills and moved out there with him. She and Uncle hadn't seen each other since."

"And now she's here?" Kili asked.

"Yes, and she's a widow and she and Uncle have been spending a lot of time together," Fili grinned.

The brother's laughed like two dwarflings who had just discovered a hidden jar of cookies.

"Tell me about her," Kili leaned in.

"She's just a few years younger than Thorin, although she and mother were good friends. Her name is Sapphire, but she goes by Fire. She had red hair and is very nice. From what I can gather, she and Thorin were good friends. I think they loved each other. Anyway, she married a dwarf from the Iron Hills and they never saw each other again. But her husband died a year ago and she decided to move back to Erebor. I met her about a week after she arrived and that night, she Mother and Thorin had dinner together. She and Thorin spend most evenings together and we've seen a lot less of him. He still comes around about twice a week to spend time with us, but the rest of the time, he's with Fire."

"This is great! So, are they courting?" "

No, but I think things are going to change soon. I believe Thorin's been waiting for you to come home," Fili said. "Speaking of which, how was your time with the elves?"

"It was fine," Kili said. He saw the appalled look on Fili's face and laughed. "It really was. They were polite, more to Tauriel than me, but that's alright. We had a nice place to stay. I was allowed access to just about everywhere in the kingdom, including the training areas, weapon's rooms, archery range and kitchens." Kili grinned. "I was given tours, attended a lot of dull elvish meetings, and participated in a number of feasts and celebrations. They had a couple of tournaments, which I got to take part in. They quickly learned not to underestimate our height difference or dwarven strength. More than a few elves got a number of nasty bruises."

Fili slapped Kili on the back in pride. "Good for you."

"Over all, it was a good stay, although I was done with it about halfway in. Tauriel was having such a wonderful time, I couldn't bring myself to ask her if we could leave early."

"Well, you're a good dwarf," Fili said. "I'm sure she appreciates it."

The door to the sitting room opened and Tauriel walked out. "What do I appreciate?" she asked.

"That we stayed the entire six months with your kin rather than having me drag you home after the first month," Kili smiled.

"Oh, I do appreciate it," Tauriel came up behind Kili, leaned over and ran her hands along the side of his body. "And I plan to show you my gratitude later." She kissed the back of his neck.

Kili shivered under Tauriel's touch and turned a light shade of pink.

Fili grinned. "I'll see you at dinner." He stood up and walked to the door, he turned around to see Tauriel slide into Kili's lap and give her husband a deep, passionate kiss.

"Do you need me to take Torsten with me?" Fili asked.

Kili looked up over Tauriel's shoulder, "If you wouldn't mind, brother, that would be great."

Fili went back to Torsten's room and found his nephew playing on the floor. The toddler was happy to see Fili and reached up to him as Fili bent down to pick him up. "Come on, let's go see what Hrafn's doing." Fili walked back into the sitting room to find Kili pushing Tauriel's robe down around her shoulders. "Wait a moment, Kili. I've got your son in my arms," Fili laughed.

"Better walk faster to the door then," Kili said, his lips hardly leaving Tauriel's face.

Fili just shook his head with a chuckle and left, making sure the door was locked as he pulled it closed behind him.


	30. Chapter 30

The entire family was gathered together at dinner and it was a great feeling. Fili was a little surprised to see Balin and Dwalin there as well, but they were family too.

Kili told the family just about the same things he told Fili about their stay in the Greenwood: the meetings, the tours, the celebrations, the tournaments. Tauriel added in things here and there and the family was happy to know their stay among the elves had been a pleasant time, although Dwalin scowled through most of the report. Fili knew Dwalin had never forgiven Thranduil for all the injustices he had done to the dwarves. Fili still struggled with that and wasn't sure he had entirely forgiven Thranduil either. He loved Tauriel like a sister, but other elves, Fili was still quite wary of, although he didn't hold quite the animosity for the elves that Dwalin still did.

After Kili's report and as dessert was being served, Dis pounded on the table with her knife, getting everyone's attention. They all looked up to her. Fili was surprised to see a slight look of nervousness in his mother's eyes. She was normally so strong. He wondered what she had to say. Dis stood up and faced the family.

"I have something I want to say. First, I want to say welcome home," she looked to Kili and Tauriel. "We have missed you so much. Erebor just isn't the same without you here." There were a number of "here,here's" from the assembled family.

"Secondly, I" she hesitated, "I want you all to be the first to know, that after sixty or more years of being asked, I finally have said yes to Dwalin to court me." She reached out and took Dwalin's large tattooed hand in hers.

There was a loud roar of cheers from the crowd and Fili and Kili took the opportunity to throw their bread rolls at Dwalin's head. This news was practically an engagement announcement. Fili had had some idea of Dwalin and Dis's feelings for each other throughout most of his life. He knew Dwalin had asked to court his mother at least once, but she had turned him down, saying her life was for her children. Fili had no idea they had still felt this way towards each other.

Dwalin had an uncharacteristic smile on his scarred face and he looked happy. Balin was wiping at some tears with the tablecloth's corner. Thorin stood up and gave Dwalin the most bone crushing hug he could manage before he turned to his baby sister and gave her a tender hug.

"I'm so happy for you, Dis," he said.

"Thank you, Thorin," she smiled. "Now, I think it's your turn at happiness." She gave him a sly grin.

Fili watched to see Thorin's face turn a shade of red. He hoped, he hoped, he hoped Thorin would seek his own happiness now. When the commotion died down and everyone had given Dis and Dwalin their consent and congratulations, Thorin stood. He didn't have to bang his knife on anything to gain anyone's attention. Just standing there was enough to quiet them all down.

"I too, wish to welcome Kili and Tauriel home and second what Dis said, Erebor is not the same without you. I also want to congratulate my sister and my best friend in their happiness. It has been a long time coming." The four older dwarves chuckled at this. They knew how long Dwalin had wanted to court Dis. Thorin paused and cleared his throat nervously. "I too have something to say. I assume, Kili, that your brother told you about one of our newest residents to Erebor, a dwarrowdam named Fire?"

Kili and Fili blushed and nodded.

"I figured as much," Thorin chuckled. "Well, not even Fili knows everything and so I want to clear this up with everyone here, right now. Sapphire, or as she is better known, Fire, was born here in Erebor and was my brother Frerin's age. We three," he waved his hand at Dis and indicated his late brother, "were friends with Fire. When we made our homes in the Blue Mountain's, Fire's family did too. She and I were good friends and we even loved each other. But, my responsibilities as prince, especially after Thror was killed, kept me from having the time to form any serious relationship with Fire. We talked of marriage, but I had my duties. It was up to me to see our people were kept safe and well. I traveled a lot, getting work in whatever towns I could, working in the forges and earning what money I could to care for my people and my family.

"Fire patiently waited for me, hoping that I would take her as my wife, but I felt that because of my uncertain and heavily burdened life, it would be an injustice to her, to submit her to that way of life. Had Fili been a girl, I might have married her and worked at producing an heir, but with a nephew to keep the line of Durin alive, I refused that path of life. Fire was understanding. She was," Thorin sighed, "too good for me. She married an Iron Hill dwarf and moved out there. I never saw her again. Not until a month ago.

"She wanted to return to Erebor after it was reclaimed, but her husband would not go. However, he died a year previous and so she moved here herself. We have rekindled our friendship and think that perhaps we would like to take that friendship forward. I no longer have the burdens I did then. I still have many, but they are different. I feel that for the first time in my long, long life, I have the luxury of seeking a relationship of love. I will be asking Fire to allow me to court her. That is, if I have your approval," Thorin smiled.

Another loud roar of joy went up and Thorin was piled upon by the entire family. He was given back breaking hugs and slaps on the back. Fili and Thorin shared a tender, knowing look and Fili smiled at his uncle, genuinely happy for him.

When they had finished with Thorin's congratulations, Kili stood up. "My turn!" he called out.

They quieted down again and looked at Kili. "With all of these happy announcements, and I am so very happy for you Thorin and Mother, we have our own happy announcement. Tauriel is expecting again!"

Dis and Sigrid squealed with joy and Tauriel was hugged by all, although much more gently. The fourth grandchild of Dis would be arriving in about ten month's time. Everyone was giddy with all the love in the air and good news.

As the noise level calmed down, somewhat, again, Kili turned to Fili. "Well, Fili, everyone else has had news to share. Have you any of your own?"

Fili stood up and looked out at the family's expectant faces. "I too would like to express my congratulations to Mother and Dwalin, Uncle Thorin, Kili and Tauriel. It is a truly blessed time among our family and yes, I too have news to share," he gave a dramatic pause, watching as everyone leaned forward slightly in their seats. "Milly has her first loose tooth!"

Laughter and cheers went up and Milly was placed on the table for all to see her ability to wiggle one of her front, lower teeth. Dinner ended long before the evening was done.

Fili was sent to fetch everyone's instruments and while he was out, he ran into Fire.

"Come join us," Fili invited after explaining to Fire the family dinner and all the news, except Uncle's intentions towards her.

"I hate to interrupt your family's evening," she said.

"No, I insist. You must come. Please?"

"I'm not dressed for dinner with the King," she said.

"It's not dinner with the King," Fili said. "It's dinner with the family and I'm inviting you. Besides, dinner's over. We're going to have some music." Fire smiled.

"Well, if it's alright with Thorin."

"Yes, come on!" Fili took her by the hand and pulled her down the hall.

Thorin was delighted to see Fire follow Fili into the room. He ran to her and pulled her in front of the family. "Kili, Tauriel, this is Fire. Fire, this is my nephew Kili, his lovely wife, Tauriel and their son, Torsten, and I guess I should introduce their other child, too."

Kili's hand was on Tauriel's flat stomach, but Fire understood.

"It's wonderful to finally meet you all and congratulations on your new little one," she smiled.

"And I guess now's as good a time as any," Thorin said. He suddenly looked quite nervous. Fili and Kili exchanged identical joyful glances. "Fire, I would like to ask you if I might court you?" Thorin held Fire's hands as he looked into her eyes.

"I," Fire stuttered and paused just a moment, "I would be most happy to accept your proposal to court me." Her smile was wide and tears shined in her eyes.

Then Thorin did something that no one in that room had ever seen him do, he pulled Fire into his arms and kissed her; a long, loving kiss. Cheers once again rose up from the family. Thorin and Fire's faces were red with embarrassment and excitement.

Fili passed out the various instruments and there was lots of music that night. Fili and Kili played several duets on their fiddles. It was good to play with Kili again. Fili had missed his brother so much. Dis and Dwalin played some duets on their lutes and Thorin played his harp while Fire sang with her deep, rich voice.

It was a night that was long remembered among the royal family.


	31. Chapter 31

Sigrid climbed into bed. It was getting colder outside, but the inside of the mountain kept a fairly constant temperature. Still, Sigrid felt cold, so she was happy to snuggle down next to her warm husband.

"It was a wonderful evening, wasn't it?" Sigrid said.

"Yes, quite the night. I can't believe everything that went on," Fili chuckled thinking back to the various announcements.

"What do you think about your mother and Dwalin?" Fili smiled.

"I'm happy for them. It wasn't quite the shock for me as I think it was for Kili. I knew that Dwalin had tried courting Mother at least once in the past, but I'm guessing he asked her many times over the years."

"Why do you think she always turned him down?"

"Several reasons. She loved my father. Her heart was for him. I'm not saying she couldn't have loved Dwalin, but her heart was for Father. And secondly, because then Dwalin would have been my father and I think Mother left that role open for Thorin to fill," Fili had been thinking about this since coming home from dinner. If his mother had accepted Dwalin, Thorin wouldn't have been such a dominate figure in Fili's life. He might never really had known his uncle if Thorin hadn't been forced into taking an active part in his nephew's life.

"She gave up her own happiness for Thorin?" Sigrid asked.

"I believe she did."

Sigrid unconsciously scooted herself closer to Fili, wrapping her arm more firmly around his chest. "I'm happy for Tauriel and Kili. Another baby!"

Fili chuckled. "I'm surprised they are having another so soon. Although, after seeing them this afternoon, I guess I shouldn't be too surprised."

"What?"

"Why do you think I brought Torsten home?" Fili smiled.

"Oh," Sigrid giggled. "Is it strange for dwarves to have children so close together?"

"Yes. Fili and I are five years apart. That's considered fairly close in age among dwarf siblings."

"And you don't usually have many children," Sigrid said.

Fili rolled over so he was facing Sigrid. He loved the way she looked when she was laying on a pillow. She kept her long hair braided in a single plait when she slept at night, but around her face, the loose hairs would curl in the most attractive way.

"No, we don't usually have many. There are exceptions, like Bombur and his wife, but most of the time, there is only one or two children." Fili's arm laid across her waist. He caressed the small of her back.

"Why is that? Dwarrowdams probably have a good hundred years for child bearing, where as humans have twenty, at the most. But we can have children every year or two."

"Such a blessing for men. Sadly, they don't always realize it is such a blessing." Fili took a deep breath and tried to collect his thoughts. "Well, one reason we have so few and so far apart is because pregnancy does not come easily to our race. I don't claim to understand why. I am not a healer, but a couple might try for years before they succeed. Gestation is slightly longer than one year and pregnancies are very hard on our women. Human's don't seem to have such a difficult time and your gestation periods are three months shorter, which allow more children more often."

"Yes, I guess so, but even so, you have a much longer time you are capable of producing children. Even if you only had one ever decade, that could still be nine or ten children for one female's life time," Sigrid pointed out.

"Yes, but you see, there is one other major factor."

"And that is?" Sigrid asked.

"We dwarves are a bit of a reckless race. Not many of us males survive to old age. My own father died very young. It's pretty amazing that he and Mother manage to conceive two children in the short time they had together."

"Oh, yes," Sigrid looked down at the pillow rather than Fili's face. "I'm sorry. I quite forgot."

"It's alright." Fili ran his fingers over Sigrid's face and hair. He loved the way her skin felt. "The thing is, like I explained to you once, long ago, usually when a dwarf loses his or her spouse due to death, it breaks them. To find love again after you've given your heart and soul to someone else, breaks a dwarf. Many will follow their loved one in death due to grief. Those, like Mother, who live on, usually do for their children. Mother could have married Dwalin and probably had more children, but her grief for the loss of my father, plus the responsibilities she felt she had toward Thorin, kept her from ever remarrying and having more children."

"I see. So what about Fire? She has no small children to care for and her husband died a year ago. Why did she not die too?" Sigrid asked.

Fili smiled. "I suspect that she did not love her husband with all her heart and soul. Yes, I'm sure she loved him, but I think her heart might have belonged to someone else."

"Thorin?" Sigrid gasped."You think she still loved Thorin all her life?"

"I think so. I don't really know and it's not my business to ask, but yes, I think she has always loved Thorin."

"And how do you feel about all the announcements from this evening?" Sigrid's arm around Fili grew tighter and she placed her forehead up against his.

"I am very happy for them all. Mother and Thorin deserve love and happiness after all the many long years they have cared for others and sacrificed themselves for others. It is long overdue and I'm so pleased for them. And Kili and Tauriel? Well, I couldn't be happier for them. I hope all goes smoothly and that we'll have another niece or nephew to babysit next year."

"Fili? We've never talked about having more children. I know that Hrafn's only a year old, but we've never even talked about more."

"I know," Fili sighed. He wanted another child. He wanted many children. Milly and Hrafn were the most precious of jewels to him. But Fili was scared, for Sigrid. They had gotten lucky with Hrafn being so healthy when he was born, three months before a normal dwarven baby would have been due. A full dwarf babe wouldn't have survived being born that early. He didn't want to risk Sigrid's life or that of a childs. "We have been blessed, Sigrid. We have a daughter and a son."

"You do not want more?" Sigrid asked.

"Not so. I want many, but I'm scared for you, Sigrid. Your body just can't carry a full dwarven pregnancy. What if the next one dies because it came three months early?" Fili felt a tear escape his eye and roll down into his pillow.

"Hrafn survived."

"We got lucky with Hrafn. We might not be so lucky next time. I couldn't bear to lose you or our child. I would rather stop now, while we have two perfect children and you by my side to raise them, rather than risk your life and our children grow up without a mother."

Sigrid nodded. "I'm sorry."

"You've nothing to be sorry for," Fili sighed.

"I have caused you so much worry and I can't give you more children without great risk. Fili, you had to have known this before we married. Why did you marry me? Why didn't you marry a dwarrowdam, who could have given you full-blooded dwarflings?"

"I have Milly. She will continue the line of Durin. One day, she will grow up, marry and have children. The throne of Erebor will go through her children. Marrying you wasn't about producing more heirs to the throne. It was about love. I loved you, Sigrid. I love you very, very much and if we never have another child, I will still live a happy life, with you."

"Really?" Sigrid asked, tears falling down her cheeks.

"Really," Fili said. He leaned in and kissed her tears away.


	32. Chapter 32 Holiday

Winter gave way to spring and even the mountain dwelling dwarves of Erebor found their ways out of the front gates to soak in some warm sunshine.

Thorin, who had been uncharacteristically happy over the winter, declared a holiday. He and his council had been planning this holiday for months. Most of the mountain's residents moved outside for the day. Bombur had large cooking fires set up in the rocks outside the front gate. He and his team cooked huge amounts of food. In the lower grassy fields, tournaments had been set up with all sorts of games and events. Another area had been set up with a stage, where musicians played and dwarves danced.

Dwarves were everywhere and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. Men from Dale had been invited and many came, bringing their own cooks and musicians to add to the celebration.

Fili and Kili were dressed in fine clothes, although they were a lighter version of their usual heavy winter formal attire. They walked together with their families among the crowds. They talked with their people, laughed with them, and rejoiced with them when there was good news. They performed a couple of fiddle duets on the entertainment stage and they danced with their wives as other musicians performed. Fili taught Milly how to do a common quadrille dance and she glowed like the sun at dancing with her father.

Thorin had promised his people an announcement, and at noon, the Dwarves of Erebor gathered at the stage to hear their king.

"Good dwarves," Thorin's deep voice bellowed, "today we celebrate. It has been six years since Erebor was reclaimed. Through hard work, we have rebuilt our kingdom and we prosper greatly. Erebor is wealthier than it has ever been and I do not mean just in gold and gems. This past year alone, we had three dwarflings born in the mountain. I already know of two more that will be born this year!"

Cheers rang through the crowds. Other races thought dwarves to be a cold, greedy race, who only loved precious metals, but they didn't know the truth. Nothing was more precious to the dwarves than their children.

"I also wish to announce the upcoming marriages our people will be blessed to see: Narvi, son of Gror to Alrika, daughter of Dertain, General Floi to Vanyra, daughter of Norval, and Dwalin, son of Fundian to Princess Dis, daughter of Thrain."

The cheers couldn't have been louder. Three weddings coming up this year, including one for the princess. Erebor was indeed blessed.

Fili watched as his mother stepped forward and held up her hands. The crowds quickly grew quiet.

"There is one other wedding to be announced and as the sister to the King, it is my honor to announce the marriage of King Thorin Oakenshield, son of Thrain, to Sapphire, daughter of Eben."

Cheers went out long and loud, with Fili and Kili's being the happiest of them all. Thorin held out his hand to Fire and she joined him on the stage. Through the din of the crowd, the musicians started up the music. It was a slow, well known, tune. Thorin and Fire stood in front of one another and Dis and Dwalin in front of each other. They slowly began the steps of a complicated ceremonial couples dance, which was usually done only at weddings.

They were joined Fili and Kili and their wives, who had been taught the dance over the course of the winter. Sigrid envied Tauriel's gracefulness. Even with the slightly rounded stomach of pregnancy, Tauriel was ever graceful. Sigrid was embarrassed by her own clumsiness, but the intensity of love for her in Fili's eyes made her forget her mistakes and she proudly danced with him.

The two other couples whose weddings had been announced joined in the dance and then many more couples joined in. It wasn't a jovial dance and there was no laughter. It was a dance of love and promise. The dance consisted of a series of movements, which, when originally created, were given meaning, signifying love, promise, loyalty and protection. The dance ended with the couples pressed closely together, ready for a kiss that would seal their love and oath.

At sunset, the Dwarves of Erebor moved back into the mountain and in a long solemn procession and walked their way to the Lake of Carregsten, the large subterranean lake where Fili had taken Sigrid for their first special night together after their wedding. Blazing torches lined the walls as the dwarves filled the ledges and spaces that surrounded the lake and waterfall.

When everyone had assembled, a single boat with two dwarves slowly rowed out to the middle of the lake. Everyone watched as many small, carefully crafted boats, each containing a single candle were placed into the water. The other torches in the cavern were extinguished.

One of the dwarves in the boat began playing a fiddle in a slow song of praise then the other dwarf stood and sang a ballad in Khuzdul of their creation by Aule and in thanks of all he did to create the Dwarves, making them a secretive, passionate race who found joy in creation.

When the song was over, the torches were relit and the crowd dispersed, back to their own homes after their day of celebration. Kili and Fili quickly made their way to one of the secret alcoves in the wall of stone in the cavern. They had placed a number of their finest, ceremonial clothes back there and they quickly changed into them. They each wore their capes that signified their rank in Erebor and in the Line of Durin. They placed on their heads their respective crowns and waited for the crowds to leave.

Thorin had requested his family and company stay behind. When the small group was alone, Fili and Kili stepped forward from their alcove. Kili stood alongside his mother and Fili in the front of them all.

"Friends," he said. "This indeed has been a great day. The celebration went off without a hitch and so I say to you King Thorin and the members of the council who are here, well done."

There was a murmur of approval among the company. "Now, it is my honor, as Crown Prince of Erebor, to perform a ceremony of marriage for our King and Princess Dis to their betrothed."

And so Fili married his uncle to the lovely Fire and his mother to his old weapons trainer, Dwalin. After the marriage braids were put in, the two new married couples kissed. Bombur and Bofur carried in a barrel of the best Dwarven Mead the mountain had to offer. They toasted the couples and speeches of various levels of embarrassment were made.

Dwalin made no attempt to hide his joy in having more than just a life companion. He promised that the stars, high in the sky, and everything inbetween, would know of his love for Dis. Fili and Kili blushed, but their mother did not. She grabbed Dwalin in a very un-princess-like way and kissed him hard.

Everyone looked towards Thorin, who did not mean to displease his friends and Fire found herself pulled into a passionate kiss that lasted a lot longer than what was polite. Finally Fili and Kili intervened with the two sets of newlyweds and the couples were escorted to their homes, first Thorin and Fire, then Dwalin and Dis, who Fili was afraid weren't going to make it through the door before their honeymoon began.

The rest of the company was red-faced and laughing. They all went to the Room of the Prince for one last toast, except for Sigrid, Tauriel and the children. The three children had long ago fallen asleep in their mother's arms. It was several hours later that Fili returned home and crawled into bed, curling up behind his wife's soft body.

She shifted a bit and whispered quietly, "It's late. You going to be able to get up in the morning?"

"Why would I do something silly like that?" Fili pressed his nose into the back of Sigrid's neck.

"Because while your uncle is having his honeymoon week, you are in charge, my Prince." Sigrid giggled at Fili's nose tickling her neck.

"Kili can do it," Fili kissed her neck. "He's a prince, too."

"I'm not sure Thorin would approve."

"I don't care." Fili's eyes were heavy. Part of him wanted nothing more than to fall asleep and part of him wanted to stay up the remainder of the night, kissing and loving his wife.

She rolled over to face him and placed a long kiss on his lips. "Better get some sleep, my love." She began to massage his temples and he felt the caressing fingers of sleep pulling at him. He wanted to protest, but already, sleep had won.

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**Thanks to all you wonderful readers. The story will go on, but my ability to keep up a chapter a day is done. I had most of it written before I started publishing, but now don't have any more written ahead of time. I want to make sure I put in quality chapters rather than keep up the pace. I hope you continue to enjoy the story! Thanks for all the great comments. Happy Easter!**


	33. Chapter 33 Choosing a Name

Kili and Tauriel's second son arrived a month before Torsten's third birthday. What surprised Kili was the baby's complete lack of hair. Dwarf babies usually had a head of hair and some even had fine beards when they were born. Torsten had had a head of dark hair, but this one was completely bald.

Fili could tell something was wrong the moment Kili stepped out of the birthing room. Kili was not holding his new child in his arms and his smile wasn't as big as it normally was.

"Kili? Has something happened?" Fili ran to his brother.

The rest of the family were suddenly at his side, concerned by the look on Kili's face.

"Did something happen to the baby or Tauriel?" Dis asked.

Kili shook his head and gave a smile. "No, no, everything is fine. It's a boy! Another son and he is healthy and well. Oin is still looking over him."

"Another strong lad," Dwalin said. "Congratulations."

"So what's wrong, Kili?" Fili asked.

Kili looked to his family. He would have to tell them. They were going to find out the truth soon enough. Would Thorin be angry? Who ever heard of a hairless dwarf?

"He," Kili paused, "he doesn't have any hair. Not a single bit of fluff on his head."

Everyone let out their breath. Fire began to laugh.

"Why do you laugh? My son is completely bald!"

Fire pulled Kili into a hug. "Forgive me, Prince Kili. I do not laugh to hurt your feelings or insult your son. Instead, let me put your mind at ease."

Kili blinked several times. He looked to Thorin, who was smiling. Kili relaxed a bit.

"I'm guessing your son will have red hair, like his mother. It is not unusual for red haired children to have no hair when they are born," Fire explained.

"Really?"

"Kili, I had three red-headed sons. They all started life without a single hair on their heads, but by the time they were grown, they had hair and a beard that would rival your cousin, Gloin's."

The relief on Kili's face was evident. He let out a nervous laugh and then smiled one of his biggest smiles.

"A red head? We might have to reconsider his name," Kili said.

Fili was just about to ask what the babe's name was when the door opened and Sigrid walked out.

"You can go in now," Sigrid smiled.

Fili kissed his wife before following the family in. Tauriel was sitting in bed, propped up by a mountain of pillows. In her arms was a bundle of blankets, in which a tiny face peeked out. Kili took the bundle from his wife.

"Family, meet my son. Tauriel," he looked to his smiling wife, "Fire thinks he's going to have red hair. We might want to rethink his name."

"What name were you going to give him?" Fili asked.

"Colsten," Kili answered.

"Dark stone?" Thorin asked. Kili nodded. "It's a good strong name," Thorin said.

"How about Reasten?" Dis suggested. "Red stone."

"Well, there's no guarantee he will have red hair," Dwalin put in. "How about Dwalin II?"

"I like Izzy," seven year old Milly put in.

"That's not a good name for a prince," Sigrid smiled at her daughter. "What about Aelfwin?"

"Elf friend he may be, but we aren't naming him that," Kili said.

Tauriel snorted back her laughter. The baby got passed around to everyone, except Dwalin, who only patted the baby on the head.

"Well, what about Stregsten? Strong stone," Fire added her suggestion.

"Not bad," Kili said.

"Or Alardsten," Fili had to put in his voice, too. "Brave stone."

"Not bad, either. Well, you two, what name do you think the baby should have?" Kili looked to Torsten and Hrafn.

"Ax!" shouted Hrafn.

"Dragon!" came Torsten's suggestion.

Everyone laughed at the names the two two year olds had come up with.

"I don't think Dragon would go well in Erebor," Kili laughed.

"Thorin's a good name," Kili's uncle suggested. Kili raised his eyebrows at him. Thorin laughed. "There is an ancient word that many have forgotten, but I think you might like: Iomhar. It means archer."

Kili smiled. He looked to Tauriel. She nodded. "Iomhar is a fine name," she said.

"Well, family, meet Iomhar, son of Kili."

Kili and Tauriel were congratulated on the birth of a healthy son. When it was time to go, Fili and Sigrid took Torsten with them. Hrafn was happy to have his best friend over to play.

"I'm so happy for them," Sigrid said as they walked home.

"So am I," Fili agreed. He started to laugh as a though struck him.

"What is it?" Sigrid asked.

"I was just thinking back to all the mischief Kili and I use to get into and we were five years apart in age. Those brothers are three years apart. Kili's going to be very busy for the next seventy years. Not to mention Cousin Hrafn here, who is the same age as Torsten. Those three, growing up together, here in Erebor? I hope the mountain survives."

Sigrid laughed but then became very sad. "Seventy years," she sighed.

"Aye. You know that we don't reach adult hood until we're in our seventh decade."

"Yes, I know, it's just, I won't live to see Milly, Hrafn or my nephews reach adulthood. It makes me sad. We will have children living with us for the rest of my life and I'll never see my grandchildren."

Fili put his arm around his wife's shoulders. Men had such short lives, Fili thought. They had talked about this before, but most of the time, they tried to avoid the idea. It was just too sad. Sigrid would grow old and die before her own children were grown. It was the choice they had made when they married. Fili wasn't sure about Sigrid, but he would never have changed a single choice. He loved her and was honored to be the one she chose to spend the rest of her life with.


	34. Chapter 34 An Invitation

**A big thanks to all of your who keep making comments and giving reviews. Each one means a great deal to me. My kids are on spring break this week, so writing and getting to the computer is a challenge, but having their energy around me has helped me a bit with my writing. Thanks again to all of you lovely readers!**

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Sigrid understood that dwarves and humans ages differently, but she was tired of having an eight year old who did nothing but play and stay underfoot all the time. So she decided it was time Milly started learning some simple work around the house. Already Milly helped in the kitchen, but they did not often eat at home, preferring to use the family dining hall. So the kitchen at home was for the smaller day meals and baking treats.

"Milly, how would you like to learn to sew?"Sigrid asked.

Milly ran to Sigrid's side. "Really?"

Sigrid nodded. "Yes, I think you are old enough to learn to sew and mend."

Milly climbed up into the seat next to Sigrid, who handed Milly an old rag.

"You want me to sew this?" Milly asked.

"No, dear," Sigrid chuckled. "This is to practice on until you get comfortable using a needle. Here," She handed Milly a small needle with a length of thread already threaded into the eye. "Now, watch what I do."

Sigrid showed Milly in slow, easy stitches. Milly's first attempt pulled the thread right out of the needle. She tried again and again. Sigrid was patient and re-threaded the needle many times.

"It's not very good," Milly said as she looked over her first row of stitches.

"It's great for a first try. I'm very proud of you." She gave Milly a new length of thread and Milly started a new row, only losing her thread once. Sigrid praised her and together they sat and sewed until Fili came home.

Milly jumped out of her chair. "Adad! Look, look. Mama taught me to sew." She showed off her stitches with pride.

Fili took the rag and gave it careful inspection. "Surely you gave me Mama's sewing, for these stitches are very neat, indeed."

"No Adad, it's mine," Milly bounced.

"It's wonderful, Milly," Fili hugged his daughter. "You did very well."

"Didn't she?" Sigrid came to Fili to welcome him home. "I think tomorrow I will give her some of Hrafn's leggings that need a new hem."

"Can I go play now?" Milly asked.

Sigrid nodded and Milly ran off to her room.

"Looks like you lasses have been busy," Fili removed his coat.

Sigrid took the coat and hung it in the wardrobe. "Oh yes, but it's been good. How was your day?"

"Not bad," Fili said. "Uncle got an invitation for a birthday party."

"A birthday party?"

Such events were unusual among the dwarves. Birthdays were celebrated by the family with feasts, but a party? That was odd.

"Yes, for our hobbit burglar, Bilbo Baggins," Fili grinned.

"Oh, how wonderful. But he lives very far away, doesn't he?"

"Yes, but the party is to be in Rivendell," Fili's grin widened.

"Rivendell? But that's an elven realm."

"You should have seen Uncle's face," Fili burst into laughter. "Lord Elrond was very good to us when we passed through, better than we deserved." Fili chuckled at his memories of bathing in the elves' fountain. "And Uncle has had good dealings with Lord Elrond and the embassies from Rivendell, but, it's still a place full of elves, and you know Uncle Thorin."

Sigrid laughed. "So, is he going?"

"He said he'd let us know at dinner."

VVVVVVVVV DINNER VVVVVVVV

Sigrid sat at dinner in between Fili and Hrafn. Her mind wandered back to that first dinner she had had with Fili and his family. It had been Thorin, Dis, Fili, Kili and Milly. Just five, but now, family dinners were bigger, louder affairs. There was Thorin, Fire, Dis, Dwalin and usually Balin. There was Kili, Tauriel and their two sons, Fili, Sigrid and their two children. The family had gone from five to thirteen.

She leaned over to where Kili and Tauriel sat. "You need to have another baby, for there are thirteen at our tables now and that's unlucky," Sigrid said, teasingly.

Kili grinned and looked eagerly at Tauriel, but she just rolled her eyes.

"Give me about fifty years," Tauriel sighed. "Those two boys are running me ragged now that Iomhar is walking. You never saw such mischief makers."

"I don't know," Dis joined in, "Kili and Fili set the bar pretty high when it comes to mischief."

There was a lot of laughter from Thorin, Dwalin and Balin, who knew all too well the trouble Kili and Fili had caused in their youth. Fili blushed slightly, but Kili's grin grew wider.

The meal continued as Dwalin and Balin retold several stories of the prince brother's mischief in their youth. Sigrid was amazed Fili had even survived his childhood at all what with all he and Kili had done.

"And that was only the stuff that you found out about," Kili laughed. "Right Fili?"

"Oh aye," Fili grinned.

Dis put her head into her hands. "I do not even want to know."

"Well, family," Thorin said with pride as he looked out over the family he loved so dearly, "Some of you know I received an invitation to attend the birthday celebration of our esteemed burglar and friend, the hobbit Bilbo Baggins. The celebration is to be held in Rivendell in September and it goes to all members of the Company and their families."

Everyone spoke excitedly before Thorin cleared his throat, and then there was silence.

"The journey will be long as winter will be setting in the Misty Mountains at that time. We would leave late summer and return in the spring. Fire and I will be going."

"You mean to stay with the elves that long?" Dwalin grunted.

Thorin blushed a bit. "No. Before winter sets in, we will travel to the Blue Mountains to visit our kin who still live there. We will winter there."

"Who will run things here while we are gone?" Kili asked.

"Fili," Thorin answered.

All eyes turned to Fili, who nodded.

"I have agreed to say and run Erebor in Thorin's absence," Fili said, calmly and looking every inch the Crown Prince.

By the end of the night, it was known that Thorin, Fire, Balin, Kili, Tauriel and their two children would be going. Thorin would extend the invitation to the rest of the Company the next day. Dis and Dwalin decided to stay and help keep an eye on Fili. Fili acted insulted, but secretly was glad to have his mother and weapons master stay with him.

Thorin had left Fili in charge for several short trips over the years when Thorin had gone to Dale, Laketown, and Mirkwood for weeks at a time, but this would be Fili's first long term rule of his future kingdom. Thorin had great faith in Fili's abilities, but he was happy Dis and Dwalin were staying, too.

Sitting together, in bed, after putting the children to sleep, was Fili and Sigrid's best time for talking. They sat facing each other, holding hands.

"Are you alright with this? Staying behind and ruling Erebor for at least six months?" she asked.

Fili sighed. "I want to go with the rest of them, of course, but yes, I'm fine with staying behind. Thorin's still got several decades left of ruling, but I know he doesn't want to be king until his death. He's giving me opportunities to rule so I will be ready when he passes the crown to me."

"He's right to trust you to do this. I know you will do a good job."

They leaned in and rested their foreheads together. "As long as I have you by my side, I know I can do this."


	35. Chapter 35 Quake

The eve of Thorin's departure for Rivendell was one of mixed motions for Fili. He was sad not to be going. He would miss Thorin and he would especially miss Kili. He was excited, but terrified at ruling Erebor even for a few months. Thankfully his mother would be there to keep an eye on things and help him out.

The travelling company was packed and ready to head out. Thranduil had promised them safe passage through his realm and Beorn was set to welcome them on the other side. All was arranged.

Fili and Kili were talking late into the night in Kili's home when they felt it - a deep rumble in the mountain. They jumped up and ran out the door and down the hall. They could hear voices shouting. A tremor shook the very ground.

"Kili!" Tauriel's voice shouted.

They turned back around to see Tauriel in the hall.

"Evacuate!" Kili cried. "Get Sigrid and the children and get out of the mountain!"

The brothers exchanged glances before running to the throne room. Tauriel would see their loved ones safely out. Thorin was in the throne room, shouting orders.

"It's a mountain quake. Start the evacuation. Boys, you know what to do." Thorin clapped a hand on their shoulders. They all shared a silent good bye and then Fili and Kili ran. When they came to where their paths parted, they embraced each other tightly and then they went their ways.

Fili ran to the west side of the mountain until he came to the central hub of the residential area. A large bell hung from a strong frame. One of the bell's uses was to warn the residents in times of emergency and Fili was about to take the hammer and strike the great bell, but it occurred to him this was a bad idea. The vibrations from a bell so large could make the mountain quake worse. Another, longer tremor shook the mountain and Fili was knocked to the ground. He could hear rocks falling and dwarves crying out. When the ground settled, Fili ran, yelling as loud as he could, ordering the people to evacuate. The head of the guards for the west wing was there, gathering his troops and giving them their instructions. They were to knock on every door, check every room and send all dwarves to the central hub, where they would be lead in the evacuation by the Head Dwarf and his council.

Fili was satisfied with their ability to evacuate the residents, so he ran down the stairs to the next level with several guards. This level was the merchant area and market. At this time of night, the rooms should be empty, but Fili had to check.

Another level down brought him to the tops of the mines on the west side of the mountain. The night foreman was directing miners out.

"Fili, lad!" a familiar voice rang out. Fili turned to see Bofur running towards him.

"Bofur, have you seen any damage on this side?" Fili asked.

"Some, but not much. The tremors seem to be coming from the other side," Bofur said. The east side, where Kili was. "Saw some big piles of rock, one bridge that's collapsed and another that looks like it will soon," Bofur continued.

"Will these lost bridges hinder the evacuation?"

"The one that's cracking will. We need to get the ropes across," Bofur answered.

Fili looked to the foreman.

"All's well, here, so far, Prince Fili. Don't worry, I'll make sure every dwarf is accounted for," the foreman said.

Fili clapped him on the shoulder before following Bofur. They passed lines of dwarves being led out of the mountain. Bofur led Fili to the crumbling bridge, but the mountain decided to quake again, although this was smaller and of a shorter duration. It was enough to collapse the bridge, though. Thankfully no dwarf was on it, but Fili could see a group of dwarves on the other side.

Great ropes of enormous strength were tucked away in the floor. Fili opened a stone tile and revealed a great crank. He started to turn the crank and the two ropes attached to the crank began to tighten. They were attached to an identical crank on the other side. When the ropes were taut, Fili and Bofur went to work. A storage room near the bridge contained wooden planks. They began hauling them out. Both ropes were fitted with many small metal clasps. The plank would be put into place and the clasps closed, securing the plank. One board by one board, they began placing the planks. Several dwarves on the other side were working too. They would meet in the middle and the stranded dwarves would be able to cross.

Fili could hear a rumble in the distance. Rock was falling somewhere. He prayed to Mahal that his family was safe and they had made it out of the mountain.

"Prince Fili!"

He turned to see several guards running to him.

"There's a fire. One of the forges crumbled and the fire is spreading," a guard said.

"Help with the bridge," Fili ordered one of the guards. "Bofur, see these dwarves safely out!"

"Aye!" Bofur called back.

Fili ran with the other guard to the great forges on this side of the mountain. "Anyone hurt?" Fili yelled as they ran.

"I'm not sure, Prince, but as I left to find you, I heard someone say some of the workers were missing."

Fili ran faster. He could feel the heat of the forge long before they reached it. A group of dwarves were hobbling down the hall, including the night foreman for the forge.

"What news?" Fili asked.

"It's out of control. The heat is too much. If you go any closer, you will burn," the foreman said.

"How many lost?"

"Five, my Prince," the foreman's head hung sadly. "The rest got out, but these lads are in a bad way. They need medicine right away."

Fili took one of the wounded dwarves by the arm and wrapped it around his own shoulders. "Let's move out," he ordered.

They slowly made their way out. Fili was glad there had been no more tremors. He hoped the worst of the quake was over. He and Bofur's party reached the main gate at the same time. The sight that greeted Fili at the gate was dreadful. Thousands of dwarves stood in their night clothes, huddling together and counting their loved ones. A few large tents had already been erected. Fili hoped one of them was a healing tent.

"Thank Mahal!" Fili heard Thorin's voice. He turned to find his uncle pulling him into a hug. "I feared the worst for you. Your group is the last one out."

"I'm fine, Uncle, but these lads need help. Has a medical tent been set up yet?"

"Aye. Oin's got one over there." Thorin helped the wounded to the tent. In the tent, Fili could see their wounds. These lads were burned, one of them badly. Immediately several healers came to them and began their work. Fili helped the dwarf to a bed before looking to his uncle.

"Kili? Sigrid?"

"Sigrid and the children are unharmed and safely tucked away in my tent," Thorin answered.

"Kili?"

Thorin turned around to look at one of the occupied beds. Fili followed his gaze to find his brother laying there, eyes closed, pale faced and unmoving. Fili ran to him and gently held his hand.

"Oin says it's not too serious," Thorin spoke quietly.

It looked serious to Fili. Kili's head had a large bloody bandage on it, his leg was tightly splinted and his hands were covered in bandages.

"A hall he was in collapsed," Thorin explained. "Kili and a few others were caught in the slide. One of them wasn't so lucky. The rest are like Kili, cuts and broken bones, but nothing that won't heal."

Fili let out a sigh of relief. "How bad are things, Thorin?" Fili asked, snapping back into his role as a prince rather than a nephew.

"If this had happened during the day, it could have been much worse. We will meet about it very soon with the council. Right now, go see your family, they are worried for you," Thorin said.

"What about Kili?"

"I'll stay with Kili," Tauriel stepped into the tent. She knelt to Fili and hugged him, relieved to see her husband's brother alive. "Sigrid is worried sick. Go to her."

Fili didn't need telling again. Thorin's tent was easy to find among the tent city that was springing up all over the place.

"Fili!" Sigrid cried and threw herself at him.

"Adad!" Milly and Hrafn were at Fili's legs, hugging him.

He bent down to his children and held them tight. "Thank goodness you're alright." Torsten and Iomhar stood a little ways off. Fili reached to his nephews and pulled them close to his body. He held and kissed all four children.

"I was so worried," Sigrid said. "Everyone else came out long ago and Kili was brought out on a stretcher. I don't know if he's alright, but Tauriel went to check on him."

No wonder Kili's children looked so worried. They had not yet had news of their father. "I just saw him," Fili said. "He's got a broken leg and a gash on his head, but Oin said he'll be fine. Tauriel is with him."

"Adad's hurt?" Torsten asked.

"Yes," Fili hugged his nephews again. "Adad's got a hurt leg and a cut on his head, but he will be up again soon. You don't need to worry."

"Are you alright?" Sigrid asked.

"I am, surprisingly," Fili said. "I think it's all the adrenaline right now. I need to go speak to Uncle Thorin and the council. Where's Mother, Fire and Dwalin?"

"Out helping others. They are all fine," Sigrid answered.

Fili gave her a deep kiss, thankful that she and all his family was alive. "I'll be back later."

He found Thorin, Balin, Bofur, and several council members, as well as the captains of the guard for both sides of the mountain. They retreated to a campfire near the entrance to discuss what they knew.

Thorin spoke. "Before we begin our reports, let me say well done to you all. The evacuation went as smoothly as it could under the circumstances. Many lives have been spared thanks to your efficient handling of the situation. Now, what is our death toll looking like?"

As everyone reported what they knew, the names of the dead or missing were recorded. Several of the work foremen as well as the Head Dwarves for the residence areas reported in. In the end, they were aware of twenty five dwarves unaccounted for and sixteen known dead. One death was too many, but they all knew it could have been much, much worse.

Several bridges were out, but all the residential areas reported having been evacuated. If there were no more tremors, a crew would enter the mountain in the morning to begin evaluating the safety of their halls. Supplies would be brought out as soon as it was safe enough to send in more crews.

The sun was starting to peek over the eastern horizon before they had finished making their plans. Dis and Fire arrived to report on conditions in the camp. There were many wounded, but only a few were serious. Mostly the dwarves needed shelter and food. Parties of dwarves were being led to the lower fields where the ground was softer and they could rest in more comfort. Guards were patrolling the area to keep them safe.

Fili turned to Thorin, "Has the beacon to Dale been lit?"

"Aye, and an rider sent to the meeting place," Thorin answered. A central meeting place between Dale and Erebor had been set up soon after Thorin had reclaimed the mountain. If the beacons were lit on either side, a rider went to the meeting place from each city. The riders would exchange information, request aid or pass on whatever the news, then the rider would return to their king to report. This saved both sides a great deal of time in requesting aid in times of need. "I'm not sure how much Dale can help us. The quake might have affected them too."

"We'll soon find out." Fili looked at Thorin, who looked very weary. He was finally starting to show a little of his age. Ruling Erebor was a huge burden, but Fili knew that Thorin wouldn't trade it for the world. He loved having this home for his people and he had worked so hard at rebuilding it and making it the greatest dwarven kingdom. "Uncle, why don't you go get some rest?"

"I'm King, Fili. I can't do that right now. I need to be here, helping."

"Nothing can be done right now. Not until we can get the first crew in. I'll keep an eye on things and let you know if anything changes. Besides, if you don't rest now, you'll fall asleep on your pony and we can't have the King fall off his noble steed on his journey," Fili smiled.

Thorin's head snapped up. "Oh, I'd forgotten. I will send a letter to Rivendell. Bilbo will understand."

"Understand what?"

"That I cannot make it to his party. I can't leave now," Thorin shook his head.

"You can. I will take care of this," Fili said. He hated the idea of Thorin missing his trip to see Bilbo. He had been so looking forward to it.

"Fili, I have no doubt of your abilities, but what will it look like, the king leaving his people on the morning following such a calamity. No, I must remain," Thorin looked over his people, camped out all over the mountain side. He loved them more than he loved himself.

"Looks like you won't get that holiday that you have desired for a decade now," Fili sighed.

"I'll make it up to Bilbo. Next year I will travel to the Shire to see him. I'm sorry that I've also taken away your thunder," Thorin said. Fili looked at his uncle, confused. "You were all set to rule the kingdom while I was gone and now I'm not leaving."

"Oh, Uncle. I'm not sad about that. I know that I can't rule half as well as you. It's best you are here for this," Fili smiled.

"No, Fili. You will be twice the king I am. And to prove to you my great faith in you, I will put you in charge of the quake recovery. I am yours to command," Thorin looked to Fili's shocked face. "To a point, anyway," he smiled.

"Thank you, Thorin." Fili didn't quite know what else to say. Thorin was going to let Fili take charge of such a huge operation, despite him still being here. Fili felt the weight of the burden that Thorin always carried. It was heavy, but Fili would bear it well and make Thorin proud.


	36. Chapter 36 Recovery

The rider who had gone to the meeting point to meet with Dale's rider, returned in the early morning. Dale had also been affected by the quake, although it didn't seem to do quite as much damage. They would send aid as soon as they could.

Bofur was in charge of the first crew into Erebor. While they were waiting, Fili went around the camp to talk to the people. He heard their stories and gave his condolences to those who had lost a loved one. He visited the healing tent . The dwarf who had been so badly burned, died in the early morning hours.

Kili was awake and talking quietly to Tauriel. Fili went to his brother and rested his hands on Kili's shoulders.

"I'm glad to see you awake," Fili said.

"I'm glad to see you, too," Kili replied. "As soon as Oin lets me, I'm going to have a chair moved outside, so I can be a part of the council and not stuck in here."

"I'd be glad to have you out there with us," Fili said. "Thorin has put me in charge of the recovery. I need your help."

"You?" Kili said, but realized he sounded as if he doubted Thorin and Fili. "Of course you, sorry, Fili," he blushed. Fili smiled. "Is Thorin still planning to leave for Rivendell?"

"No. He's already sent letters to Thranduil, Beorn, Bilbo and Lord Elrond explaining the situation. He told me he'll make it up to Bilbo and go visit him in the Shire next year. Try not to get hurt again and maybe he'll let you accompany him on that journey."

Kili smiled sadly. "It's a dreadful thing that has happened. Are many dead?"

"Seventeen that I'm aware of," Fili answered. "Bofur has taken a crew in to check on the stability of the mountain. If all is well, we'll send in more crews to gather food and supplies. I don't think we'll enter the mountain again for several days; make sure the after tremors are over."

Kili nodded appreciatively. He didn't like not knowing what was going on.

"Are the children alright?" Kili asked.

"I peeked in the tent not long ago. They were all asleep. I imagine they will want to see you as soon as they are awake," Fili said. "Are you alright?"

"My leg hurts and I've got a headache, but that's to be expected. Other than that, I'm just shaken up over what has happened. I didn't do my job well since my people had to carry me out, unconscious, on a stretcher."

Fili looked at the pained embarrassment on Kili's face. "That's not what I heard. The captain of the guard told me you helped search homes for some missing and found several dwarflings that had hidden under their beds in fear. You reunited them with their parents. You got out all the residents and miners before you were unfortunate enough to be under the wrong arch at the wrong moment. I know that Thorin is very proud of you."

Kili's eyes were sad, but he gave a small smile. "Thanks, Fee."

"I had better get back out to see if Bofur has returned. I'll have a chair all set up and ready for you when you are able to make it out." Fili clapped Kili gingerly on the shoulder. "I'll see you very soon."

The sun was bright and Fili blinked a few times before moving back to the gate. Thorin was sitting in a chair, but his head hung down, fast asleep. Fili walked to where several council members stood, talking.

"Any news?" Fili asked.

"Not yet, Prince Fili."

"How are things going in the camp?" he asked his mother.

"Fine except they are hungry and slightly embarrassed about being out of the mountain in broad daylight in nothing but their sleeping clothes."

Fili sighed. "As soon as we can, we'll have food. Are there no rations in the storage rooms?"

"No, Prince," the guard said. "Well, there are a few wafers of cram, but not enough to feed everyone."

"Take what we have to the healing tents so our wounded may get some nourishment," Fili told him. One of the guards followed Fili's orders. At least fresh water wasn't a problem, with the river that ran right out the front gates of Erebor, although they had no way of transporting water. Overall, Fili was disappointed by the lack of basic supplies kept in the gate storage rooms. It seemed all they had was a good supply of tents and little else.

Movement at the gate entrance pulled Fili from his thoughts. Bofur and his crew were coming out, carrying large sacks with them. Fili turned to Thorin, who was still asleep. Even though Thorin had put Fili in charge, Thorin still needed to know what was going on, especially at this early stage.

"Thorin?" Fili called quietly. Thorin's head snapped up and he came to Fili's side. "Glad to see you and your team safe," Fili said to Bofur. "What news?"

"Things aren't bad in the areas we searched. We headed straight for the kitchens and checked every room and bridge along the way. The front side of the mountain seemed to have sustained little damage." Bofur turned to find his brother. "Bombur!"

The large dwarf was capable of great speed when needed and he came running when he heard his brother's call. Bofur and his team passed their bundles to Bombur. Each bundle contained food, except one, which had many wooden bowls.

"Thank you, this will make everyone very happy, but I have no way of cooking. I need several pots," Bombur said.

"Where are the nearest ones to the entrance you know of, Bombur?" Fili asked.

Bombur thought for a moment. "We used several large ones back at the Spring Celebration. They are in the smallest reception room."

"Leave it to us, we'll get them. Get a fire going Bombur." Bofur smiled. He and his crew went back into the mountain.

"Do you think it best to use the first crews into the mountain on such a task as finding food and cooking gear?" Thorin quietly asked Fili.

Fili nodded confidently. "The dwarves must be fed. All other problems and discomforts are easier dealt with if done on a full stomach."

Thorin placed a hand on Fili's shoulder. "Well done." Fili looked into his uncle's smiling face. "I'm going to go visit Kili." And with that, Thorin walked away.

Was Thorin testing him, Fili wondered. It wasn't long before a rumbled could be heard from the gate. At first, Fili feared another tremor, but it turned out to be Bofur's crew, rolling out the giant iron pots. Bombur was ready. He had water from the river fetched with a bucket the crew had brought him. In no time, he had a stew bubbling.

Thousands of dwarves waited for food, but only forty or so bowls were on hand. Fili asked that the children and any expectant mothers be fed first. Bowls were washed in the river and food was re-dished to women and wounded, then re-washed again and so on. It was a terrible way to feed the people. Other food that had not gone into the stew was distributed to many others who waited. Fili's own stomach growled at the wonderful smell, but he would not eat. Not until every dwarf had been given a share.

Since Bofur had declared the path to the kitchens to be safe, another crew was organized to return to the kitchen with more food, dishes and buckets. Bofur's crew would head back in to explore deeper in the mountain and see if they could locate any of their missing.

Little by little, supplies were brought out, making the dwarven camp more comfortable.

Kili was brought out in the early afternoon, carried by Thorin. Fili wasn't sure Kili was really well enough to be out, judging by the pained look on his face, but Kili had insisted and Fili was glad to have his brother by his side. Fili saw his wife walking about the people, talking to them, passing out food and comforting them. Fili's heart swelled. Sigrid was a good princess to his people and grateful they had accepted the non-dwarf princess and loved her.

The day wore slowly on and with the adrenalin long since gone from his system, Fili began to feel sore and weary from the ordeal. He would not show it, though. Thorin was always strong and level-headed, never showing weakness or weariness. Fili would not either, but he hoped that perhaps this night he could get a few hours of sleep.

The first caravan from Dale, led by Sigrid's own brother, Bain, arrived in the early afternoon. Bain had turned into a fine lord for his people and Sigrid was delighted to see him. The caravan had food, blankets, and items for cleaning and washing - buckets, soaps and the like. His supplies were well received and the princesses of Erebor, Dis, Sigrid and Tauriel went among the people, passing out food and blankets. Milly tagged along with Sigrid and helped hand out things. Make that four princesses, Fili smiled. Then he saw they were joined by Thorin's good wife, Fire. She was not their queen, but a Lady, and the people loved their King's wife.

From Bain they learned some sections of Dale had sustained damage, making a hundred or so residents homeless, but those people had been relocated within the city. The entire population of Dale was not homeless, unlike the dwarves of Erebor. Still, it would only be temporary. Once the mountain was deemed safe, they would move back in. There would be many without homes, Fili realized, but he would be able to take care of them better once they were back in the mountain. The large reception room would be a good temporary place for their homeless until a new place could be found for them.

Bofur's crew emerged from the mountain for the last time for the day just as the sun was setting behind the horizon. They had rescued ten dwarves during the day and found three of the missing dead. The death toll went up, but so did the living toll and Fili tried hard to remember that. The crew was tired and hungry. Bofur sent them to Bombur for a hot meal, then he stood with Fili, Kili and Thorin to report their findings.

"East side is definitely worse than the west," he began. "Four bridges are gone on the east side and two are gone on the west. From what we can see, the west side is mostly livable, although one section of homes cannot be reached until a new bridge is constructed. Entire halls are blocked on the east side. Only about half of the halls are accessible. It's amazing we were able to get everyone out of the east side that we did." Bofur looked at Kili.

Fili patted Kili on the shoulder. It had been Kili's leadership that had saved all those people.

Bofur continued with his report, "I would suggest sending in some night crews, see if they can start to clear the blocked halls and hopefully some more of our missing."

"Would you organize some crews and explain what needs to be done?" Fili asked Bofur.

"Of course, Fili," Bofur smiled his usual smile, but he looked exhausted.

"Thank you, and, once you have, get some food and sleep. You've done more than anyone else today and we are all thankful for you." Fili clapped a hand on Bofur's shoulder, who smiled again and went off to follow his orders.

As night fell, Fili could hear dwarves singing from the lower camp. They were homeless and wearing naught but their night clothes, but it would take more than a mountain quake to break their spirit.

Fili held a sleeping Hrafn in his arms as he walked around, visiting with the guards and crews who had been in the mountain today. He wanted to know everything that was going on. He was having a hard time walking, though. He kept tripping over rocks and even his own boots. Fili decided Hrafn was just getting too big to be carried about in such a way, but as he stood talking to Thorin's Fili's arms suddenly felt very heavy and he feared he would drop his son, so he quickly handed Hrafn to Thorin.

"Fili, you need sleep," Thorin said.

He felt a soft hand on his arm, "Dearest, come to the tent. You haven't slept in two days. I don't know how you're still going." Sigrid pulled at his arm.

His stomach made a funny noise and his face flushed in embarrassment. Fili was grateful for the darkness of the night so no one would see his red cheeks.

"Did you eat at all today?" Kili asked from his chair.

"I don't remember," Fili mumbled. Even his tongue felt tired and heavy. "No, I don't think I did."

"Sigrid," Kili said, "please feed our prince and make sure he goes to sleep since he won't do these things for himself."

Fili tried to swat at Kili, but found he was just too tired. Sigrid led Fili to their tent. A bowl of stew was pressed into his hands. They were shaking. She held her hands over his as he lifted the bowl to his lips and slowly swallowed its contents. He felt better already. When he was done, Sigrid took the bowl and helped him to lay down on a bed roll. She made sure he had a blanket pillow under head and another blanket pulled up to his chin. His eyes closed and he knew no more that night.


	37. Chapter 37 A Task To Do

Fili was feeling much better the next morning and after some of Bombur's hearty stew, he was ready to face the day. With Bofur's crew having checked the general stability of the mountain, Fili was more comfortable with sending in more teams.

"Bofur, once you're ready, organize several crews to be led by your best miners. Let's determine the mountain's safety and see if more of our missing can be found."

"Aye lad, it'll be done," Bofur nodded and walked away.

Fili turned to his brother, sitting in his chair. Kili's head was looking better and he had removed the bandages off his hands. They were scratched up, but nothing more. His leg was stretched out in front of him and resting on a soft pillow. "Kili, I want you and Ori to start an official written record of our ordeal so that we may have it for future reference. I'm also quite displeased with our storage rooms here at the gate. They do not contain sufficient supplies for an emergency. Make lists of things we have needed, but been unable to access."

"Yes, Prince Fili," Ori said, pulling up a chair to sit next to Kili. He pulled out his journal and pencil, ready to write. Kili gave Fili a smile before leaning in towards Ori, so they could talk.

Fili turned next to Balin. "Balin, would you speak with Lord Bain and see if there's any aid Dale requires that the Dwarves of Erebor can give?"

"Aye lad," Balin turned to go to the wagons that had arrived the previous day from Dale.

"Dwalin?" Fili said. The big dwarf turned to Fili. "Keep an eye on the guards, would you? Make sure they continue to patrol the area for wild animals or worse. We made it out of the mountain with few weapons, so the ones we have need to be ready to protect our people."

Dwalin grunted and walked away. Fili was pretty sure the big warrior did not like taking orders from Fili, but Dwalin respected his King's decision to put the Prince in charge, and so did what he was told.

Fili turned to his trusted valet and advisor, Klor. "I want you to stay here at the entrance to keep track of who goes into the mountain and with which crew they are on. I also want an inventory of supplies that are brought out."

Klor bowed and went to the first crew, getting ready to head in.

"The rest of you," Fili waved to the other council members, "Go among the dwarves and help out where needed. Come back when the sun is at the highest point in the sky and we'll share information as we have it."

The dwarves dispersed and went about their orders. Fili took a deep breath and looked around. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits, despite the situation. He heard someone clear their throat behind him. His uncle. Fili turned to Thorin, afraid to find disapproval of Fili's handling of the situation. Instead he found a trace of sadness in Thorin's eyes.

"Are you angry with me, Fili?" Thorin asked.

Fili stammered a moment, "No, Thorin, of course not."

"Have I displeased you?" Thorin asked.

"Never, Uncle," Fili was quite concerned and confused.

"You dishonor me by not assigning me a job. Even Kili, who is wounded, has been given a task."

Fili felt like he had gotten punched in the gut. "My deepest apologies, Uncle Thorin. I didn't think of that. I am not use to giving you orders."

Thorin smiled. "I understand, but please, dishonor me no longer. Assign me a job so I am not useless."

Fili thought for a moment. "Thorin," he spoke in his most authoritive voice, "I need you to visit the lower camp and check on conditions there. Make sure they are well and have sufficient for their needs. Assure them we are doing all we can to discover the safety of the mountain so they may return home as soon as possible."

Thorin nodded his head, ever so slightly. "It will be done, Fili. Thank you." Thorin clapped Fili on the back and began his march to the lower camp. Fili caught Kili's eye. Kili nodded his head in approval and went back to his discussion with Ori.

Over the next few days, conditions on the mountain were checked and re-checked. Several more missing were found. They were weak with hunger and thirst, but Bombur took care of their food needs and Oin took care of their wounds. Several more of their missing were found dead.

The great fire caused by the collapsed forge on the west side had burned itself out. It would take longer to asses all the damage done to the forges on that side, but the caverns in which the forges were housed, were deemed safe. Finally Bofur declared the mountain safe and he took Thorin and Fili on a tour to see the damage for themselves.

Five days after the quake, dwarves were allowed back in. They were called by residential neighborhood and given instructions on halls and bridges that were to be avoided.

For those whose homes could not yet be accessed or had been destroyed, they were sent to the largest reception room where makeshift living quarters were being set up with beds and comforts.

Help from Thranduil arrived on this fifth day with more food, blankets and other supplies. Kili addressed the elves from Mirkwood, thanking them and learning that the quake had been felt in their own kingdom, although they had sustained no damage.

One mine was permanently closed after it was discovered to have been very near to the quake's center. They could not determine if their mining had set off the quake or if the quake had been a cause of nature, but they no longer trusted the mine to be safe and so it was sealed.

The work over the next many weeks was slow, hard labor. Pack animals were brought in to cart away debris. It was like the clean up after reclaiming Erebor from Smaug all over again.

Fili continued to be in charge of the mountain's recovery. Thorin and Kili began the arduous task of preparing winter storage. The quake was a setback that could hinder the amount of food and supplies that they might be able to store.

The weeks turned into months. Kili's leg healed and he was back with his usual energy. The children fell back into their normal routine and all was well, except for Milly. Every night, Fili's sweet daughter had mountain quake nightmares where the ground shook and she was alone, calling for her parents, but never finding them. Fili's heart broke every time she had one of these dreams. He and Sigrid took turns holding Milly, comforting her and soothing her back to sleep.


	38. Chapter 38 An Unexpected Party

September brought cooler weather. The mountain's recovery from the quake was completed now. Homes had been rebuilt, the dead buried with honor, and life continued as it always had.

But, Fili couldn't help but notice a change in Thorin's mood. He was a little more down than usual, although his running of the kingdom remained as strong as ever. Fili had a feeling he knew what was troubling his uncle.

"I'm sorry, Uncle," Fili said one day during a rare moment in which they weren't surrounded by council members or others, needing the attention of the King or Prince.

"I don't know of what you speak," Thorin's deep voice rumbled.

"That you didn't get to go to Rivendell for Bilbo's party, which is next week."

Thorin sighed. "I am sad that I couldn't go, but I do not regret my decision to stay. It was important I be here and help with the quake recovery. You did a fine job taking charge of the rebuilding and I'm have been honored to see you in action."

"Thank you, Uncle," Fili stammered. "Did you ever hear back from Bilbo? Do we even know if he got your letter?"

"I don't know," Thorin said. "I never heard back. I can only assume he got the letter, is angry with me for not going, and that is why he did not reply."

"Thorin, that's ridiculous," Fili admonished. "Bilbo's not like that. You know that better than anyone. He would not be angry at you for missing his party due to a mountain quake that threatened to destroy your home and people."

"I guess not," Thorin said. His mood did not improve.

The following day, the home of Thorin Oakenshield, King Under the Mountain was invaded by a most unexpected party.

Thorin was in his study, sitting at a desk and going over ledgers filled with numbers that counted their winter food and supplies in storage.

Fili and Kili were giggling like dwarflings about to pull their best prank ever on their uncle. With straight faces, they walked into Thorin's study, side-by-side, and approached his desk.

"What can I do for you, boys?" Thorin said, barely looking up at them.

"It occurred to us that we may have made a big mistake," Fili said.

They had Thorin's complete attention now. "What mistake?"

"Well," Kili said very seriously, "We think it may have been a mistake to send Bilbo's birthday presents to Rivendell."

"Why is that?" Thorin asked.

"Because Bilbo's not in Rivendell," Fili said, "he's right here!" The brothers stepped apart allowing the small, light footed hobbit to come into Thorin's view.

"Bilbo!" Thorin stood so quickly, he knocked over his chair and scattered his papers of ledgers and numbers. Bilbo was lifted off his feet in a huge hug.

"Thorin!" he squeaked, "It's wonderful to see you, too, but I would like to breathe again."

Thorin released him and Bilbo had to take in a few gasps of air.

"It can't believe you're here," Thorin said, his smile wide. "Why are you here?"

Bilbo blushed. "Well, I decided since you couldn't come to my party, I would bring my party to you."

Thorin grinned.

"It's true, he did. Bilbo arrived with two large wagons filled with food and gifts," Kili said, excitedly.

"Yes, well," the hobbit nervously shuffled from one foot to the other, "I hope that's alright. I know I'm showing up uninvited, and,"

Thorin didn't let him say another word. "You never need an invitation to come to Erebor. You are welcome here anytime you please as a most honored guest and friend of the King. A king, who owes you his kingdom."

"Oh dear me, no, Thorin," Bilbo blushed again. "You owe me nothing. All I ask is your friendship."

"And you have it," Thorin said. "Tell me how you came to be here."

"Well, when I arrived in Rivendell, you letter had just arrived. Lord Elrond and I talked it over and I decided I would come here, to surprise you. I sent letters to Gandalf, Beorn, Thranduil, and King Bard to let them know my intentions. They all promised me aid. Elrond's sons escorted me to Beorn's. Beorn escorted me to Mirkwood. Legolas escorted me through Mirkwood, and on the other side, I met with Gandalf. We went to Dale and now, here I am!"

"You certainly are and I'm very happy you've come. Have you been shown to your room yet?" Thorin asked.

"No, I only just arrived. I wanted to see you first."

"Thank you." Thorin looked a little humbled. Bilbo was the only person outside the family that had a way of bringing out Thorin's soft side. "Come on, then. I'll give you a tour and open up a guest room for you. I can't wait for you to meet my wife. She has heard so much about you."

"Ah, yes, the lovely Fire. I can't wait to meet her, too," Bilbo said as he walked with Thorin.

Just before he walked out, Thorin shouted over his shoulder, "Take care of my appointments for the rest of the day, boys!"

Dinner that night was a huge affair. All of the Company and their families were invited to welcome back their hobbit. Bilbo was ever so polite and met each and every member of all the families, speaking with them all and getting to know them.

"I'm afraid we've overwhelmed you, Master Baggins," Dis said across the table.

"Not at all, " Bilbo waved his hand casually, "We hobbits love big families. You should see the family gatherings on my mother's side of the family. More cousins than I can count."

"So," Dis went on, "When is this birthday party of yours?"

"Next week. Eight short days," Bilbo said. "I do home I brought enough."

"Enough of what?" Dis asked.

"Food and gifts," Bilbo said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"But we sent your gifts to Rivendell," Kili said.

"Ah, well, I happened to intercept your messengers on their way to Rivendell, and so I brought my gifts back with me," Bilbo blushed.

"You didn't open them, did you?" Kili asked.

"Of course not. What kind of hobbit would I be to open up my presents early?"

Bilbo spent the following week, visiting with each member of the company and getting to know their families. He got tours of the mountain and was introduced to the Council of Erebor. When he wasn't busy with those things, he spent time with Bombur in the kitchens, helping to prepare the food for his party. He had brought as many of the ingredients for all the food as his wagons could carry, which was quite a bit. Even Bombur was impressed by the amount of food the hobbit had brought.

When the big day came, Bilbo dressed in his finest waistcoat of yellow and a jacket of bright green. The party included all of the Company and their families. They were all surprised when Bilbo presented each member of the Company with a gift.

"It's the hobbit way," Bilbo explained when they questioned him. "Now, I wasn't sure what to give to a bunch of dwarves who have the riches of the greatest dwarven kingdom at their feet. I'm afraid these gifts might seem rather silly, but they are a part of Hobbit culture and I didn't think you could easily find these things here."

To Bifur, Bilbo gave a set of wooden toy figurines of hobbits. Bifur grinned and said something to Bilbo, who didn't understand the words, but caught Bifur's meaning.

Balin received a set of wooden bowls with carvings of the Shire on their sides. Kili received a set of West Farthing crockery, which made Kili laugh. Everyone remembered all too well how Kili had tossed about Bilbo's best crockery back in Bag End, when they first met.

To Dori, a splendid waistcoat of green with shiny brass buttons. Ori was given a red leather bound journal and colored chalks. There was a checkered board and playing pieces, for Bofur. Many games could be played on such a board and Bilbo promised to teach Bofur several of them.

There was an elegant pipe for Nori and a pewter tankard for Dwalin. To Gloin, Bilbo gave a large bundle of the finest pipe weed the Shire had to offer. And Oin was given a fancy leather pouch, filled with dried kingsfoil. Bombur was given a book filled with recipes for the finest food and ale in the Shire. Fili received a wooden music box that played a hobbit lullaby.

And to Thorin, Bilbo gave a plush cushion pillow in deep blue.

Everyone stared at Thorin when he received his gift. He looked at the pillow, unsure what to make of it, but he quickly regained his composure and remembered his manners. "Thank you, Bilbo. It is a most soft pillow."

Bilbo laughed. "When I was here last, you showed me the great Throne of the Kings. It looked terribly uncomfortable - a huge stone chair? I don't know how you don't get a sore backside, so I made you a cushion."

There was a moment's pause as everyone registered what Bilbo had just said, and then the room burst into great laughter, including Thorin. Bofur and Kili were rolling on the floor and Dis laughed so hard, she was crying. Fili was doubled over, clutching his stomach in laughter, as he tried to imagine King Thorin sitting on a blue cushion while on his great throne, conducting official business.

Bilbo also brought gifts for Fili and Kili's children. To Milly, he gave a dress, favored by hobbit lasses and to the boys, he gave them a large bag of chestnut tree seeds and taught them how to play Conkers. Bilbo felt bad he didn't have enough presents for the rest of the company's children. Everyone assured him it was alright, but for the hobbit, not to have gifts for the children was unacceptable. But then he remembered a special tin he had brought. The children gathered around Bilbo as he opened the tin to reveal its contents: candied treats and peppermint sticks. The children squealed with delight.

Fili sat back and watched Bilbo as he told the children a story about three huge trolls who had wanted to eat him. Sigrid sat next to Fili and he put his arm around her waist, drawing her close to him. It was times like this that were the most wonderful to Fili. He was surrounded by the people he loved. People he had worked with, laughed with and bled with. He knew anyone in that room would give his life for Fili and Fili would give his life for anyone in that room.

Back then, they had been a rag-tag band of fourteen, off on a near impossible quest, but now, everything was changed. Everything was changed and yet, nothing was changed. Under the fine clothes and fancy titles, they were still a rag-tag bunch, only now with spouses and children. The more the merrier, as the saying goes and Fili couldn't have agreed more.


	39. Chapter 39 Epilogue

**EPILOGUE**

The lads of the royal family were gathered together at Prince Kili's home. They had bathed, dressed and were patiently waiting. All except for King Fili, he was nervously pacing the floor. In an hour's time, he would be giving his only daughter to the arms of another man, in marriage: young Lord Graig, a distant cousin several times removed on his great, great, grandfather's side, or something like that. Fili wasn't real sure. He let the historians keep track of all that nonsense.

Surely Milly wasn't old enough to be married.

"Fili, you're wearing a trench in my carpet. Please sit down," Kili said.

"What am I thinking? Letting her get married. She's just a child," Fili stomped over to a chair and sat down.

Kili laughed. "She's eighty three and if memory serves me right, you were younger than her when you married and younger than her when she was born. She is certainly old enough to be getting married."

Fili put his head into his hands and rubbed at his eyes. "It's still too young."

"She's your daughter. She'll always be too young." Kili sat down next to his brother, threw an arm around his shoulders and pressed his head alongside Fili's.

Fili was thankful for his brother's comfort. He took a deep breath and tried to relax. He looked around the room at his son and nephews, who waited with them.

At seventy nine, Hrafn was an eligible Prince bachelor. When the time came, he would have no trouble picking a wife. He was taller than his father, by a good six inches, but never grew to a full human height. He looked more dwarvish than human, and was very like Fili in looks and personality. He had a knack for observation and a sense for strategy. He wielded twins blades, as well. Fili couldn't have been more proud of him.

Hrafn and his cousin, Torsten, had joined the dwarven armies that had fought on the slopes of Erebor during the War of the Ring. They had still been in their sixties and were still considered children, but there was nothing Fili or Kili could do to stop them from protecting their home. They fought as Princes should and their father's were very proud of them. Hrafn had come out with a broken collar bone and a gash down his back, but he quickly recovered.

Torsten had not come out of it so well. The cost of the battle had been the loss of the use of his legs from a serious back injury. It had been so hard to see Torsten right after the battle as he struggled to come to grips with not being able to walk ever again. He had been a bundle of energy, like Kili, and then he wasn't. A light had gone out for the lad until Hrafn and Iomhar had come up with a solution.

They designed a chair with small wagon wheels on either side and some talented craftsmen built it. Torsten had quickly adjusted to his new mobility and soon was racing alongside his brother and cousin down Erebor's halls. He could still shoot a bow with deadly accuracy and now, fifteen years later, was nothing but wild brown hair and huge grins, and highly eligible among the lasses as well.

While Torsten had taken after Kili in looks, his brother Iomhar was more like Tauriel. He was tall, slender and had dark red hair. Just as accurate with a bow as his parents, he also was a skilled swordsman and was the archery trainer and one of the sword masters among the lads who were training for the guard.

Fili watched the three cousins as they laughed together at some joke or other. They were a sight. Blond, black and red, each different in personality and temper, but they were tick as thieves, partners in crime and each other's best friend and greatest protector.

"Adad!" two young dwarflings launched themselves at Kili. He was forced to withdraw his arm from his brother's back to catch his youngest sons. Twenty five years ago, Kili and Tauriel did something no dwarf in known history had done - they had had twins. Unheard of among dwarves and rare among elves, the young twin princes were a sight. Completely identical, they were almost like miniature Kilis. Fili had called them each Kili more than once.

"Hello, boys," Kili said as they settled themselves on either side of Fili and Kili. "Do you have the beads?"

Klin and Keil simultaneously patted a pocket on the right side of their identical coats.

"So," Kili looked to his brother. "At the next wedding, we'll have Graig waiting here with us." Fili nodded. "Whose wedding will be next, do you think? Hrafn or Torsten?"

"Maybe they'll have a double one, like we did," Fili smiled.

A guard knocked at the door and announced it was time.

Kili and the boys went into the great Hall of Kings. Kili would conduct the ceremony. The boys stood in a line alongside Tauriel, who looked exactly the same as she had eighty two years ago when she had married Kili. The Prince and his elven wife exchanged smiles.

Few of Thorin Okenshield's company remained. Only Nori and a very old Bofur still lived. They sat up front, in places of high honor. King Fili would have nothing less for them.

Graig stood with his parents and family. They were waiting. Soon the doors would open and the lovely bride would be escorted in by her father, the King.

Milly grinned when she joined her father at the door. Soon it would open, but for the moment, it was just the two of them. Fili looked over his daughter in her lovely wedding gown.

"You look so much like your mother," Fili said.

"Which one?" Milly laughed.

"Both, but you are almost a copy of your mother, Mailli. I remember our wedding day. It was a small, simple ceremony with just our families in Ered Luin, but it was perfect. She was beautiful and I was head over heels in love with her."

"What about Ma? What was it like, marrying her?" Milly asked.

Fili sighed. Had it really been eighty two years ago he had married his sweet Sigrid? "She had a beautiful gown and her long blond hair had been braided by my mother. It was a double wedding. Mine and Ma's, Kili's and Tauriel's. The first royal wedding in Erebor in almost two hundred years. I held you during most of the ceremony and you played with my moustache. You wore a dress that had been made by Sigrid. We became a family that day. A wonderful family that has given me great joy. I hope you will find great joy, too. Remember, marriage isn't easy and you must work hard at it, but the rewards are endless. No matter what, though, I am always your father and I will always love you."

Fili kissed Milly on the cheek. "I love you, too, Adad."

"Are you ready to become Graig's wife?"

"Yes, I am."

Fili escorted his daughter out to a smiling Griag. Fili wasn't sure if he could give Griag Milly's hand, but he kissed his daughter once more, placed her hand in his and went to stand next to Tauriel. Kili started the ceremony and Fili couldn't take his eyes off of Milly. He was so proud of her.

Tauriel took his and into hers and gave it a squeeze. "I know that Thorin, Dis, Sigrid and Mailli are watching this, wherever they are."

"I believe you're right," Fili smiled up at Tauriel.

Milly and Griag placed their marriage braids into each other's hair and secured the braid with the beads given to them by Klin and Keil. Kili gave his sons a wink as they stepped back to stand alongside their mother.

"Dwarves of Erebor!" Kili shouted. "I give you Lord Griag and Princess Milly! May your happiness be as great as our mountain."

The crowd cheered for the newly wedded couple. Fili wiped away at a few tears that managed to escape and roll down his face.

Kili leaned closer to the couple. "Come on lad, kiss the Princess. Give this crowd a show."

Milly blushed, but Griag dove right in and gave his wife a long, lovely kiss.

Klin and Keil, ever in sync with each other said "Ew!" at the same time and in the same pitch. Fili laughed.

When night fell and the newlyweds had been sent to their new apartment, Fili and Kili sat together for a while.

"The day went well," Kili said.

"Aye," Fili agreed. "You did a nice job with the ceremony."

"Just think, a little more than a year from now, you could be a grandfather," Kili shoved his brother's arm.

"Oh goodness!" Fili's eyes widened at the thought. "I hope not."

"You don't want grandchildren?"

"Of course I do. Milly's first son will become the next Crown Prince, the next in line for the throne, provided I live long enough to pass it on directly to him." Fili frowned slightly. "When I married, I had hoped for many children, but that did not turn out to be my blessing." He thought back. He and Sigrid found out she was with child again when Hrafn was five, but the babe died in the womb when she was just three months along. They had lost their baby and Sigrid had almost lost her life, too. They knew for certain after that, that it was too dangerous for Sigrid to have more children and they mourned that loss, but they had been twice blessed with their daughter and son, and they rejoiced in their lives.

"I've always looked on your sons as my other children, not just my nephews and I know you feel that way about Milly and Hrafn." Kili nodded. "When our sons marry and have dwarflings, I will see them all as my grandchildren. I hope we have many grandchildren, Kili. But not yet. I've only just given my daughter away in marriage today. I need to get use to the idea of my little Milly being a married dwarrowdam."

"We've lived a good life, haven't we, Brother?" Kili smiled and put his arm around Fili's shoulders.

Fili put his arm around Kili's back. "You know, there have been so many times when we could have died or should have died, but we have lived, and it has been a very good life."

Kili handed Fili a mug of ale and picked up his own. "To life!" He held up his mug.

Fili clunked his against Kili's. "To life." They took a drink. "And here's to the next phase of our lives, filled with married children and grandchildren."

"To family," Kili smiled.

"To family," said Fili.

* * *

**Names: Klin and Keil are the Polish and German words for "wedge." I've read that Kili's name comes from Old Norse or Old German and means "wedge" or "one who uses a wedge." I thought it would be fun to give his sons the same name meaning as his. **

**THANK YOU: A big thanks to all of you who have read this story. It has been lots of fun and I suppose I could have just continued on and on, but I think the story has run its course and it is time to end. I have appreciate all your comments and I hope to continue seeing you around fanfiction. Keep on writing!**


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